So in just a few minutes I am off to Victoria to help chaperone a band trip. Caris' grade 7 honour band to be exact. We are gone until late Friday night (we're coming home a day earlier than the rest). I'm not sure how I feel about going - although, they are all pretty great kids. I'm looking forward to seeing Victoria after about 15 years!! I told Caris I'd only embarrass her a little.

She was appreciative.

and now for something completely different.

or maybe not. Different than say, Doug and Bob but not so different from a few months back when I had an accident that could have gone much differently for me.

On Friday I was driving down to the airport to pick up Reid from his NYC trip. Caris and her friend Nicolas were in the back and we were near the Langley exit (200th St) when the car in front of me slammed on his brakes. I in turn of course put mine on but realized quickly that we were not going to stop. From there I swerved into the left lane and spun out of control. We wound up on the boulevard sliding sideways on our wheels finally stopping and tipping over onto our side. My side. To say I was shaken is an understatement. However adrenaline quickly kicked in and after establishing that we were all okay proceeded to get the kids & eventually myself out of the vehicle. Lots of people stopped to help. Bless them. And paramedics, firemen and the police were there in a matter of minutes. It was my first accident and wow, was it something I hope never to repeat again. My dad is pretty sure that my front right tire blew because there was really no reason to lose control like I did. And I actually remember thinking as we were swerving "hmmmm, I'm not going fast enough for this to be happening - surely I will stop soon..."

So all that said - I again, have learned a couple things. One, is that these two 12 year olds were awesome. As we were first starting to lose control the first, and I mean the first thing out of Nicolas' mouth was a prayer. It was great to know that they have it in them to pray first. What a lesson. They also listened and obeyed without question when they needed to. They totally pulled through and didn't let emotion take over until we were all out, safe and taken care of. I love these two. Second, I realized something about control. You see, we create these safe, well controlled environments for ourselves and our families. We plan and orchestrate and we try to think of everything. And I don't know that there is anything wrong with this. HOWEVER, ultimately we are not the ones in control. The bottom line is in God's hands. Always. We do what we can but in the end it is all about God. I learned that I can drive safely, under the speed limit, defensively, etc etc and still accidents happen. I can create walls around me and those I care about but really, I must remember that we are all in God's hands.

How's it goin' eh? Ya knob.

Now you all know the truth. I'm a closet mac-jacket wearing, beer loving, backbacon eating hoser. Well, maybe I'M not those things but I'm a fan of those who made them famous! On Sunday we celebrated the great Doug & Bob McKenzie with the 2-4 anniversary special. We happened to be at a hotel in Vancouver, which is rather funny because not having cable at home, we look forward to new channels when we travel. It ended up we watched the good ole CBC so we could catch the big special. It started with the movie "The Strange Brew" which, I confess, still makes me giggle. The girls watched it for the first time and had a good laugh although they didn't appreciate it in the same way as Reid & I. After the movie there was an hour special of the boys, interviews, news and entertainment reels of the 'hoser-mania' all hosted by Paul Martin. Yes, that Paul Martin - the previous Prime Minister of Canada. It was so perfect. He was a great host.

The memories of Bob & Doug really do make me smile. It's interesting that you would be hard pressed to find anyone (in Canada anyway) of a certain age who isn't familiar with these two.

Beauty eh.

As so many of you know, we celebrated 15 years of marriage on Wednesday. It is hard to believe that so much time has passed since that beautiful May day. We had a double wedding with Angela & Jeff and I've never regretted that. I love that we share such a special memory.

I've been visited by a couple of 20-somethings this past week. Two girls going through some difficult challenges. I am so glad to be through that time in my life. Being on the cusp of maturity, becoming independent, struggling to define who you are and what you are going to do with your life. I don't miss it.

It has made me thankful to be clearly on the other side. To be the one celebrating 15 years of marriage, owning a house and a minivan, being the parents who are going to school fund raisers, chaperoning band trips etc etc. I like this place we are in. I'm through with the angst of youth.

And I've got the gray hair to prove it.

What a fun morning I've had!! My friend Melanie came over and we (okay, SHE planted) more veggies in my garden. I'm so overwhelmed with her generosity - she came and dug up my lawn for the garden and then has been planting and trying to teach me what to do. I confess, I am a total and complete novice. So far I've got peas, beans, carrots, lettuce, peppers, onions, cukes and tomatoes. I'm hoping to get the hang of this so that next year we can expand and have even more produce.

It's a very satisfying thing - to plant a seed and watch it grow. It is so simple - ready some soil, stick in your seed and water it. Soon enough, you've got food.

I wish everything in life was as straightforward.

Happy Mothers Day.

Today is the first Mothers Day in a very long time that I've been alone with just my family to celebrate with. My mom and my sister are both away so we're on our own. It's kinda nice - different, but nice.

I'm feeling so honoured today. I've been so spoiled - special breakfast, Church, Special lunch, gifts (wow on the gifts!!!) and a nice drive. All in all, a perfect day. I'm feeling so grateful for the family God has seen fit to bless me with. They are just an amazing bunch.

And I'm thankful for my mom. She is a beautiful, strong woman. She is creative, talented, unbelievably giving, a perfect example of a Christ follower. In following her example I am a better mother to my girls. I have seen unconditional love in action.

For her I am exceedingly thankful.

Pity da fool who forgets Mothers Day.

http://www.ifilm.com/video/2668992

Sorry Jeff, hopefully the link will appear this time.

Well, today I want you all to know that I, yes me, am a hero.

What? How can that be you ask. Let me tell you the story - and you, along with my children,can also adore me for my heroic feat.

I woke up around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday morning. And as I tried to get comfy & fall back asleep I could hear our dog Pippi prancing around. I heard the "tic,tic,tic" of her nails on the laminate and I also heard her sniffing - big loud sniffs. Now, this normally is no big deal but it went on for a few minutes - and this caught my attention. So I hauled my rear-end out of my nice warm bed and soon discovered what or should I say who, Pippi was sniffing for. We are hamster-sitting our niece Rebecca's hamster Pip. The door to Pip's cage was wide open and his cage - empty. uh-oh. I called Reid and the girls both woke up in the commotion and there was all four of us looking for this hamster in the middle of the night. Pippi eventually gave up her sniffing and went to bed which left us searching. We broke up and I eventually spied Pip cruising down the hallway in a burst of speed - adrenaline and the rush of freedom calling the little rodent. Reid finally caught him and we got him back in his cage and taped everything as solid as we could. What an adventure.

And I - well, my quick and curious mind saved the day, making me a hero - and a little hamster named Pip was rescued.

I'm sure that my niece will think of great things with which to reward me!

Right Bec????

And what a few days it's been. As I last posted, on Friday we were at a funeral. On Saturday we were at the other end of the spectrum as we celebrated a wedding. It was a beautiful celebration - two lives joining together. Very joyful, very romantic, very much a reflection of Doug & Elise. It was very fun for Reid & I to watch these two get married. We've known them since we moved to Hope in 1999 and started volunteering with the youth. Doug and Elise were among those first teens we got to know. It's fun to look at a new couple just beginning and remember that feeling. All the romance and dreams in the world.

And then today found us at yet another celebration. A friends 70th birthday. Chris is one of the most wonderful men you will ever meet. He has done more in his 70 years than most of us will do in a lifetime - traveling, speaking, creating and developing smarty-pants scientific theories. But his defining characteristic is the love he has for his Lord. The man is an extraordinary example of a follower of Jesus. I am so thankful that he and his wife Pauline are in our lives, and in the lives of our children. They are true gifts and if I end up half the person Chris is - I will have ended well.

So in the last three days we've celebrated life in its varying forms. In death, in marriage, in a birthday.

And every celebration has been wonderful.

I've just returned from a funeral. I knew the gentleman but not extremely well - when you grow up in a small town you know everyone "sorta". But maybe I knew the family a tad better than that - he and his wife went to our Church until a recent move down the valley. He was 71 years old, had a wife of almost 50 years, 3 children and quite a few grandchildren. He was a pastor, a bus driver, a guy who devoted a great deal of time to helping those in need. He was a good man.

Reid was privileged to put together a slide show about him. He did an amazing job (as usual) if I do say so myself. He's very gifted. What I love about these slide shows is that it gives everyone a much bigger glimpse into a persons life. We knew Andy for this sliver of time, but he lived so much more - and pictures can give you a greater sense of who someone was.

One of Andy's friends shared some light memories and his oldest grand-daughter shared memories on behalf of the grandkids. They were great. Very quirky, very specific and very Andy-type memories. What a gift he's left to those kids.

Another friend asked us as we were leaving "what do you think people will remember about you?" It makes you think. What kind of memories are we creating now. What are we leaving as our legacy?

Death makes a person stop and look around at life. It makes us realize how temporary this whole earth thing is. And it makes us realize that we need to maybe be a bit more intentional in our relationships and in the living that matters.

So many random thoughts in my head today. Some good, some well, some are just bouncing around with no connection to anything.

In Bible study we are examining the words of Jesus. What Tony Campolo calls "Red Letter Christians". In many Bibles the words that Jesus spoke are in red. Our ladies study decided to start in Matthew and examine just the words that Jesus said. It is such a great and diverse group of ladies. We have been doing this for 4 weeks now and we are just getting into the Beatitudes. There is plenty of discussion and all of it is good solid stuff. I'm very privileged to lead such a group.

But Jesus said a lot of things. "blessed are the poor in spirit(theirs is the kingdom of heaven) ....blessed are they who mourn(they will be comforted).....blessed are the meek(they will inherit the earth).....blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness(they shall be filled)....the merciful(they will be shown mercy) ...the peacemakers(they will be called sons of God) and on it goes. So very different than our cultural teaching - our culture screams out - me first! Take care of number 1! If you have enemies - blow 'em off (or up!) Not so with Jesus. There is a power and a gentleness here that is amazing.

It gives me lots to think about.