July 31, 2012

Multitasking...

Multitasking might
lead to these sorts of things...



...if you are anything like me.

The waffle in the foreground was
cooked for about 25 to 30 minutes ~
It was as stiff as a board when I
rescued it from the waffle iron.
Which, by the way, was still plugged in!
The background waffle (for comparison) was
cooked for the usual 4 minutes ~
It was still edible. :)

How could this have happened?
I had gone downstairs to tear apart the bunk bed ~
Threw sheets in the wash, shook the quilts outside,
etc. etc. etc.

Oops! Please tell me you do things like this too.
Feel free to share in the comments...
I'm sure it will be an encouragement to us all. :)

Have a great day!
Camille

July 26, 2012

Homemade Granola Bars

Homemade Granola Bars ~
Adapted from the recipe found at Lauren's Latest.
How fun is that?

These granola bars taste similar to the
Quaker Chewy variety ~ but, they're homemade.
Yes, they are sweet.
Yes, they are a treat.
No, they are not for breakfast.

But...oh...are they good! :)

On these HOT days of summer,
it is wonderful to have a treat to make
without having to turn the oven on!

Better and better.



I have a BIG jelly roll pan ~ 12" x 17" ~
If yours is not as big, you might want to make half the recipe.
I line mine with parchment paper ~
there is no need to grease the pan that way.

Here's what you will need ~

1/2 cup Butter
1/2 cup Liquid Honey
2/3 cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
4 1/2 cup Quick Cooking Oats
(Do Not use large flake oats for these!)
2 1/2 cup Rice Krispies Cereal
1/2 cup Mini Chocolate Chips for sprinkling on top

Here's what you do ~

In a heavy saucepan, bring the butter, honey,
and brown sugar to a boil.
Reduce heat and boil gently for two minutes ~ stir often.
Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.

Measure the oats and cereal into a large mixing bowl.
Pour the hot sugar mixture over the dry ingredients.
Stir until thoroughly combined and all dry ingredients are moistened.

Press into your large pan (12"x17"), or two smaller ones ~
be sure to line them with parchment for easy removal of the bars.
Sprinkle chocolate chips evenly on top and press in a little.



Set aside to cool a little.
I like to cut mine at this point,
and then I put them in the fridge while
they are still in the pan, to cool completely.

If there are any left over,
they may be stored in the fridge,
or even the freezer.
Be forewarned...
they do not last long,
and they taste good frozen!

Enjoy!

Many Blessings,
Camille



July 24, 2012

Four Months ~ An Update

"Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised..."  Psalm 145:3a

It will be four months ago tomorrow that Austin was admitted to hospital.
He was in heart failure.  We had no idea.
Four months. A lifetime. Or so it seems.
On the other hand, it almost seems like a distant bad dream.
How much has happened!  How much has changed!


It's as if we have been given our son back.  He is healthy and well.
The *old* Austin from about three years ago has emerged.
His personality had been slowly fading away ~ it happened so gradually.

It's been like watching a miracle take place right before our eyes these last few months.
And we cannot stop thinking of all that the LORD has done!
And we cannot help but praise Him for all His goodness and mercy.
And we give HIM thanks.

How different things could have been.

Austin is well. He is healthy.  And we rejoice!
One day at a time.  Cherishing these moments.
Seeking never to take any of these things for granted.
We do not deserve them.

And God is Good. Always.

The future is the Lord's.  We do not own it.
We do not own our children.  We do not even own ourselves!
We belong to HIM.


How has Austin been doing?
Some of you have been asking.  Thank you for your kind interest.
Thank you for your prayers.  It all has been such a blessing!

Before Christmas, Austin got down to 100 lbs.
He is now stabilised at just under 130 lbs.
He feels the best he has in a few years.
He gets stronger all the time.

He is able to do so much!

Last Summer he said that he would never pick up a hockey stick again.
He has been recently found playing street hockey, and enjoying it!
He walked the entire beach walk (over three miles)
and stayed ahead of me the whole way!
He didn't have to stop once, and I did not catch him!

He is constantly going places on his bike.

There is a new zest for life and living.
He is interested in things long forgotten or given up.
The driver's licence is next on his list of *to do's*.
He's even been helping with our renovations.


How all this warms my heart!
Austin still must take three heart medicines each day.
Apparently, he will have to for the life of this heart.

But, God is able to do far above what we ask or think.
We are asking for a complete recovery for our son.
We do not demand these things of Him.
But, we continue to ask.  His ways are higher than ours.

And, His ways are always best.

What a blessing it is to know that He will do what is best for Austin and for us all.
He is Faithful and Good and Perfect in all His ways.
Even when the road is difficult.  By His grace, and in His strength,
we would change nothing.

One day at a time.  For His glory alone.

"Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless His holy name."
~ Psalm 103:1 ~

Thank you to each one of you who
has lifted us up in prayer in these last four months.
You may never know how much it has meant to our family!
It truly has been such a great blessing to us all!
We are so very thankful.

May the LORD bless you all!
In HIS Love, Camille

**Photos in this post were taken today ~
Austin built an Ikea bed with his Grandpa.

July 18, 2012

Staying Local

Summer took a LONG time to arrive ~
and now it seems to have disappeared again.
It's the way it is in this part of the world.
We make the most of it.

When the days are warm,
it's always a joy to go to the beach.
We have a local favourite ~
It includes a play area and fire pits.

We were there one afternoon/evening last week.


If you click on the image below,
and look into the distance,
you will see Calvin (in a red t-shirt ~
just to the left of the swing set pole),
and Austin (in a yellow t-shirt ~
at the very far right of the picture) playing Frisbee!
It was an unplanned surprise that I captured
them in this photo! How fun is that? :)



"Our spot" for the first part of the evening.
Can you see the white mountain-top
in the middle of the sky just above the umbrella?
That's Mount Baker ~ pretty, isn't it? :)



The boys had a little Frisbee game going while
Fraser and Emma were at the park ~ I even joined in.
Howie was with the other two ~
he got a chance to play a little later on.





Water activities were enjoyed ~ Of course!




We ended the evening with a cook-out ~
What a treat!



We were so smoky when we arrived home ~
showers were needed all around.
But, it was well worth it!

We have plans for day outings locally this summer ~
It's a blessing to block a day off here and there
to enjoy the area the LORD has placed us in.

What about you?
Do you have any summer plans?
Please do tell!
Happy Summer to you all!

With Love,
Camille

July 17, 2012

Chocolate Chip Scones ~ Oh My!

Scones are the best ~
But, these are even better because
they have chocolate in them. :)

For breakfast, a snack,
or anytime...you won't be disappointed ~
I promise!



There's one little tip to share with you ~
I can't remember where I learned this trick,
but, I love it!

Biscuits and scones do not like to be
over handled ~ they become tough.
Rolling and re-rolling is not a good thing.

Solution?

Pat dough into a rectangle.



Cut into three strips.



Then, cut triangles out of the dough strips.
They do not need any rolling or fussing.
Pop them on your parchment lined cookie sheet and bake!

Easy peasy.



Want the recipe?

Just click here to find it ~
thank you Trisha for sharing!! :)

Many Blessings,
Camille

July 16, 2012

Just a Little Heads Up...

Just a little heads up....

I am planning to remove some of the
blog links from my sidebar in the next little while.
If you come here to jump over to
any of the blogs listed,
please save them in your favourites
in case I delete the ones you like to check!

I am not planning on removing those who
update on a regular basis ~
Just those who have opted out of
blogging for the time being.

Just a little housekeeping...



It's not reflective of these lovely
ladies' blogs or anything of the sort ~
I still count them as friends,
and will miss them here!

If you are one of these precious ladies,
please be assured, I have saved you on my computer.
You are in my *favourites* in case you should ever decide to return.
See? I have not forgotten you!

Perhaps one day you will blog again ~
It would be lovely to reconnect! :)

Many Blessings,
Camille

O God, Be Merciful to Me!

The words of this hymn brought tears to my eyes in
our morning worship service yesterday.
How Precious the LORD Jesus Christ is!
How Great is HIS Salvation!

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me;
and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out."
~ John 6:37 ~



~ O God, Be Merciful ~

With broken heart and contrite sigh,
A trembling sinner, Lord, I cry;
Thy pardoning grace is rich and free:
O God, be merciful to me.

I smite upon my troubled breast,
With deep and conscious guilt oppressed,
Christ and His cross my only plea:
O God, be merciful to me.

Far off I stand with tearful eyes,
Nor dare uplift them to the skies;
But Thou dost all my anguish see:
O God, be merciful to me.

Nor alms, nor deeds that I have done,
Can for a single sin atone;
To Calvary alone I flee:
O God, be merciful to me.

And when, redeemed from sin and hell,
With all the ransomed throng I dwell,
My raptured song shall ever be,
"God has been merciful to me."

Cornelius Elven ~ 1852

Many Blessings to you each one!
In HIS Love,
Camille

July 14, 2012

Switching Things Up

The photos in this post have nothing to do with the contents of it.
Other than this ~ we have been living life apart from the renovating.
It's a good thing.

We are in the throes of a move.  An internal one.
We are switching things up.

Four rooms in our home are involved.
The school room, the office,
and two bedrooms ~ ours and Austin's.

Working with what we've got, purging some things,
rearranging others, and adding in a few new items ~
It will make our home more serviceable.
More use-able. More efficient.

Funny how things flex and grow and
things become obvious.  It was time.


We bought this home eighteen years ago.  We moved in 17 1/2 years ago.
I'm ashamed to admit that we viewed it as a stepping stone to something better.
How wrong we were! How spoiled!

Thankfully, the LORD was gracious and did not remove this blessing from us!
We surely deserved for it to be taken away.  We don't always get what 
we deserve, do we?  How wonderful that is!
Over the years, there have been many changes.


In the early days, we had tenants living below ~
the basement was not accessible to us.
I had to run outside and down the stairs to do laundry.
It was a shared laundry room under the deck.

Ah...memories!

After four years, we no longer had tenants,
but Howie moved his office home and occupied the space.
At the time of Emma's birth, the six of us were living in 
1100 square feet of our home.  We kept Emma's bassinette in the bathroom.
The time came for us to either sell and move, or take over the whole house.

We took over.

The wall between us and the basement
was removed, and the fun began!  We renovated.
Every floor, wall, window and fixture were changed.

There were single pane brown aluminium windows throughout
the house ~ they were replaced with double glazed vinyl.
We tore out carpet ~ ever had to deal with glued down underlay??
Even our foundation had to be dug up to lay new pipe!
The most direct route ~ through the house!

It was an adventure.


It took time.

We did much of the work ourselves.
Painting, cleaning, sorting and rearranging ~ at odd hours, in odd ways.
We hired in those who were skilled to do certain things ~
(ie: plumbing, drywall, electrical, and flooring).  I learned how to do things like grout
and caulk ~ the school of hard knocks is a good teacher. :)

Howie already knew how to do those things ~
however, he did have the rare opportunity to use a jack-hammer
INSIDE the house...ask me if that was fun!

We were the general contractors of the project,
and we lived with the mess and upheaval as best we could.
I did install one floor by myself ~ it was the first (and probably last) time! :)

Breaking things down, tearing things out, removing the old...
these were things we did well.  My Dad helped us greatly.
He installed stairs where they were needed,
hung doors for us, and was our carpenter...it was a wonderful blessing!

Thank you SO much Dad! XO


Perhaps, when the dust settles,
I will post about the transformation this time around.

I may even post about the past.  In the meantime...we work.
And work, and work, and work.  (You get the idea, I am sure!)
We are seeking to include the children in this process as much as possible,
and we are trying to carve out some play time too.  Seize the day! :)

Many Blessings,
Camille

**Photos in this post courtesy of Emma ~ Thank you my little love! XO
Images are of one of our adventures in recent weeks ~
Fireworks viewed from the pier. :)

July 10, 2012

Not Through Giving Thanks

Our way to God is not through giving thanks.
The only way to God is
and HIS work on our behalf.
It really is all of HIM.
If we know God, and belong to HIM ~
We give thanks.

That's how it ought to be.

Recently, I read a beautifully written post
on this very subject.
Please click here to get there.
I so appreciated Becky's words ~
I'm sure you will too.

There are always things to be thankful for!

1746. Tennis Rackets and playing together



1747. A neighbour who hires the children to pull weeds



1748. And that they can do it together



1749. My gardener friend and her gifts ~
Thank you Susan! :)



1750. Gifts wrapped and ready ~
It was a blessing that they were done early...
sometimes it works out that way.



1751. "Little House" to listen to



1752. Wild flowers on my windowsill ~
Thank you Emma! XO



1753. Berries from the garden ~
A miracle since it's been soooo wet and cold!



1754. A new mattress and the ability to *air it out*

1755. A blogging break ~ it was good. :)


I list as events unfold.
Sometimes many all at once,
and other times in a trickle.
But, always by HIS Grace.

Would you like to begin?
Just grab a pen and a journal,
set them out on the counter,
and list out your blessings.
Find the joy in the moments ~
As they arrive.

Enjoy the journey!

Many Blessings,
Camille

**My disclaimer post may be found

July 9, 2012

Around Here...

Around Here...


Home. Life. Family. Responsibilities.
Making Memories.
All rolled into one.
Life has been busy ~
Isn't it like this for everyone?



We need to work hard at slowing it all down.
Taking it all in.
And being faithful in the mundane and everyday
things of life and living.



We've got some changes coming.
It's all good, but these things require time to implement.
Extra time...where do we find that?



That's another post for another day.





On this day, I reflect.
Look back on these first weeks of Summer,
and I give thanks.
God is Good. Always.



It's been busy.

The older two have been continuing on with some school.
Austin completed two exams at the end of June,
and he has been dog-walking and teaching violin.
Calvin has some lawn-cutting jobs and helps out with paper route.
Fraser and Emma keep up with their paper route duties
as well as their home responsibilities.





Outdoor adventures have begun in earnest.
The sunny days were barely here before the tent
was set up and slept in!



Howie and I were even able to go on a date.





We took a round-trip sail on the ferry
and enjoyed dinner with a spectacular view ~
Thank you SO much...it was a real treat!
(You know who you are)!! XO





The days fly by.
There is so much to do.
My struggle is with scaling back
and enjoying the moment.
Living IN the moment and cherishing
life as it happens.
Entering into the busy-ness of it all
and not fretting about getting it all done!


In the midst of upheaval.
And at times, mess.


It's not easy to do.
But, it is necessary.
By God's Grace it can be done.
Moment by moment.
One step at a time.



What we are called to do is not impossible.
HE is Faithful to give the wisdom to
discern what those necessary things are!
What a blessing!!



Grace upon grace to you all!
In HIS Love,
Camille