Homeward Bound

It has been a refreshing break to be home. Yeah, we have had kids to chase and people to see and meals to eat, but it has felt so flexible and unscheduled. Relaxing, if you will. Are we allowed to do that?

We stayed with my (Mark's) parents just outside of La Glace. O the sweet farm air! I don't mean like that of a cattle, pig, or chicken farm, of course. Breezy poplars mixed with a hint of canola on a sea of swaying barley - there's really nothing like it. Top that all off with the view over La Glace lake, the trees, the hills, the fields - it was good to be home.

Dad has done a great job updating the windows and siding on the house. The kids loved playing on the trampoline. Judah enjoyed the lawn tractor almost as much as anything else there. All the "car-cars" in the basement delighted him as well. Micah really enjoyed our old table-hockey game. Aslynn was imagining up a storm the whole time we were there and played with pretend phones and a kitchen/workbench lots. The kids also liked having rides on the quad with Mommy and Daddy and seeing the sights of the area we grew up in. The elk over at Uncle Rob's farm are always interesting as we drive past as well. It felt good being in church in La Glace. Seeing relatives and friends often lifts the heart and encourages us. You guys are awesome.

My siblings and I and our families all gathered at Mom & Dad's on Saturday. This meant that everyone found a moment in their work schedules for each other, and for this we are grateful and blessed. Luke and Lindy trekked all the way out from Saskatoon, us from Calgary, and though others live in the area, they took time away as well. Eric gave up some of his study break and Jana is in the last months of her pregnancy. We spent Sunday mostly together as well and went to Carmen & Luke's*. Our kids love hanging out with their cousins - as some of them grow older, we hope that many good memories can be made together. We love you all.

One moment I'll remember for a while is hearing Luke recount a conversation between Titus and Aslynn. They had been playing a lot of "tea party" and "mommy and daddy" upon Aslynn's insistence and Titus had been obliging her all this time until he came to a breaking point:

"I'm tired of playing tea party," stated Titus. "Let's play something else."

"Okay," Aslynn followed.

"Let's play "Jesus", okay? -- I'll be God."

That's the gist of it anyway. It was pretty funny. It also was funny in church when Aslynn exposed Titus for the tea-party playing cousin that he is in front of everyone during the Children's Feature. You should have seen Carmen shaking her head in shame. Her mouth has no off switch, by the way. Believe me, I've looked for one without any success. Sorry, Carmen! (But only slightly - it was funny alright!)

We got to host a birthday for Micah at Mom & Dad’s to which we invited 15 kids and their parents. Micah was pleased to have so many friends and cousins over and had a blast. His race car cake should be in another blog. We also went to Spirit River to visit Chad & Christalee (whom Faith convinced to go into labour so we could see baby Jack before we left). It worked, and we got to hold him at the hospital. We also went to Andréa’s 30th birthday party where we were overwhelmed by the crowd of people we hadn’t seen in years. It was a good BBQ, Brett. Thanks for the golf game. We picked strawberries at the REAL Dunvegan Gardens on Saturday and had a wiener roast, skipped rocks on the Peace River, and ate ice cream. Earlier in the day Micah got to ride bike in Muskoseepi Park with Caleb, Ethan, and Titus. They went down steep hills, over bridges, under overpasses, and through the skate park.

And yet it was all so casual and relaxing. How do you condense a week of this magnitude into one page? All I can say is thank you. Thank you, God.

- Mark

*If you didn't already deduce this before, yes, I have two brothers named Luke. One by birth, the other by marriage, and I'm never sure which event (or brother) is more freaky.