Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Ahhh, January 1 Again

My last post was a guest post by Anna, 6 months ago, half a year spent. 
And so I begin 2013, thinking about the year past and looking forward to what the new year will bring.  One of my main ambitions this year is to meet our 4th granddaughter, Kathryn Jane, who lives too far away. We will also welcome grandchild #5 into our family this year. So very much to be thankful for. Thanks to the advancement of technology we are able to skype with the Cross family, but those two little girls need Grammie kisses and hugs.
So much fun reading the girls their bedtime stories.
Anna enjoying a didgeridoo player at the Saint John market.

Another beautiful sunset on Harvey Lake.
Our summer was really wonderful and we enjoyed 2 and a half warm weeks at our cottage on Harvey Lake in New Brunswick, playing with Charlotte and Lila, reading lots of books and just resting and relaxing. September found Sarah moving to Halifax and starting her first year of university and with a few bumps along the way, she seems to have settled into life in the city. Anna is now a grade 11 student at Northeast Kings Education Centre and plowing through some pretty hard courses. It has been a change for me not working at the church this fall, but I am enjoying the freedom that it brings. Thanksgiving this year was very special with the Naugler family here as well as Heather. We missed having Ryan and the Cross family around the table. Christmas has now come and gone and again the Naugler family arrived and we thoroughly enjoyed having them here along with Grampie Nickerson for Christmas dinner. Family gatherings bring memories of growing up with 8 siblings, my own Mom preparing and organizing a large meal, not only for our immediate family, but for a bachelor that we knew and/or a young family with no relations close by. I often think about her and wonder how she managed to maintain such a sense of peace amidst all the chaos. Did she ever feel overwhelmed or not equipped to mother? How did she carve out time for her children, her husband? Questions I would love to ask her now. Growing up, I always felt like she had everything under control - not sure if this was just seeing life through the eyes of a child or maybe I was indifferent to any of her emotions.
Charlotte with intense concentration decorating her gingerbread.
Lila just enjoying the taste of icing.
A fun day at the Halifax Museum with our family.

Andrew and I went to see Les Miserable tonight - what an incredible show. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I encourage you to take this quote from the movie to heart - "To love another person is to see the face of God."