Joanna's learning to feed herself

"Oh there's a bit left, I'll just use my fingers!

"This is fun!"

"You sure there's no more?"

And one day while I was napping, Oma gave her a nice snack and went back to her work... As you can see she had a grand time.

"All done!"

"See, I really enjoyed that purple grape jelly!"

"This bowl makes a nice hat, eh?"

"Oops, there goes my hat.... and the clean (?!) kitchen floor!"

Highlights of kids stay

Thursday Opa took the girls to co-op were they saw the Play rehearsal and joined the classes. Sarah was just bubbling over and extatic with all she saw and did!

* * *

Saturday Opa & I took the girls garage-saling where we found a darling, soft, furry dog for Sarah... (supposedly worth $44 at DisneyLand! - nuts eh?) and monopoly game for Esther...

Devos after lunch meals were a treat - to hear their sweet, earnest, exhuberant voices and hear their thotful questions and concern for others who don't know/love Jesus - their little playmate here (one of our neighbours)

* * *

Joanna sure growing up fast too and showed her budding independence.

I'm going for a walk. You coming or not?

R&S very kindly added 3 more kids to their brood Sat aft til Sun while I looked after "my Baby-kins" and Opa & Oma went to hear Elisabeth and Heidi sing and play at the AOC (All Ontario Choir). They were both chosen to do solo parts! Good for you both!

* * *
Sunday Andrew came over

What a cute pair!

Kenny comes to visit his cousins

We had the privilege of having Betty & John's kids for a week while they were moving to their new place.

Kenny came the very first day after they arrived - couldn't wait to see his cousins - apparently he & Esther have been writing eachother - cute!
What a fun day they had together and how he begged to sleep over too but....
Oh well, it was fun while it lasted, eh Kenny? Thanks for coming!

Look!


There's Kenny!

Aw, he's leaving

"phhh" "hellos and good-byes, that's my life"

Mark

Mark turned 15!

(holding his new Bible cover from Lizzie while wearing his illegal T-shirt from Heidi - you'll have to ask him about it)

Congratulations also to Betty!

* * *

New regular visitors to our church

- one of the 2 families from Bulgaria had us over for lunch.

Such a sweet family with a really interesting background. Looking forward to getting to know them better

Lisa's visit

Another lovely warm day (Tues), a lovely lady and her 5 lovely girls

and one big little boy

came over for a nice afternoon walk...

in the woods

during school-hours (gasp)

- a field-trip/belated birthday celebration for their mom's milestone year

(I can say that now).

the romantic entrance into the wood from hilltop

~

The girls still had enough energy after this to bike and scooter as we ladies sat and watched while basking in the warm sun. Thanks for coming guys - must do again!

J&B's new place

This is the house the Lord has provided for John & Betty's next abode

anyone need a car?

Yup, she got all the brains from both sides

This whole post is out of order. Its from Tues April 1 when Dad & Mom went to B&J's. This is the path/bridge by our house still quite covered in snow (a few days before M&R's visit on last post)

More of "A Fine Spring day ..."

Last week the river was high as all the snow was quickly melting - went right up the next day

Saturday April 5 was a lovely warm day and we thoroly enjoyed M&R's visit. Thanks for coming again:).

Onlookers not sure what to think, watching mom and kids playing in the huge puddles (no, mom wasn't in the puddle, she was photographing it :) - as you saw in her post. Nice shots, R!

Good thing it was warm out and we didn't have too far to go yet.
:)

Anna & Joe, w. Jim not to be left out, here after with their little belated birthday celebration, turned 6 & 4 respectively last month. Congrats!

Aren't they cute? I must say, I do have charming N&Ns :)

Tips for Healthy Living :-P

Tips for Healthy Living

Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life. Is this
true?
A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it, don't waste
them away on exercise. Everything wears out eventually, speeding up your
heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend
the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a
nap.


Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and
corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an
efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain?
Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy
vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily
allowance of vegetable slop.


Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you have a body, and you have body fat, your ratio is 1 to 1.
If you have 2 bodies, your ratio is 2 to 1, etc.


Q: What are advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain = Good.


Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?
A: You're not listening. Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In
fact, they're permeated with it. How could getting more vegetables be bad
for you?


Q: What's the secret to healthy eating?
A: Thicker gravy.


Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the
middle?
A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should
only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.


I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had.

A Fine Spring Day at Opa and Oma's

Little Mr. Independance was really proud of himself for walking the whole way by himself, and keeping up with us, too. Once in a while he took a wrong turn and strode purposefully onward, not caring whether or not we were following. Oh, the joy of being out in the sun after a long winter! To be able to freely swing one's arms and legs, unhindered by bulky coats and snowpants!

I did not realize how wet Anneke and Joseph were were getting as I happily photographed them running through the puddles. Perhaps it's just as well that they could enjoy some spring fun without their mother nagging them for a change!

And here's Willie and Maurice settling down for a nap in the sunshine together Sunday afternoon. Pure bliss :).

Last Vestiges of Winter

About 3 weeks ago, I had to go out in the morning, and was able to witness a beautiful sight, with amazing frost making gorgeous designs on everything. The pictures don't do it justice. The one shows the frost on the antenna of our van, and the other on willow branches.

Kansas City, MO

Good Friday/Easter weekend we were in Kansas City, Missouri, so John could preach in the URC there. Our wonderful hosts tried to take us a bunch of places so the kids could see animals, but it was the wrong time for that. We ended up going to a huge hunting/fishing/outdoors-type store called Bass Pro Shops where they had some aquariums (with a 150-lb catfish - you can see it right above Sarah here), and lots of stuffed animals - deer, elk, moose, bison, bears, etc. That was pretty neat too.

And just a few from around the house.

Enjoying a story together before bed:

The girls dressing up together - even Joanna seemed to enjoy putting on 'fancy' clothes and showing off in them: