bit of everything

elis shoe tying skills are unmatched, this is what i had to unscramble the other day
west edmonton mall carousel

walked by this condo sign the other day and giggled. any women who has given birth would never decide to live at "the royal crowning".
little john was born
ida + breakfast


bit o' morning reading
14th anniversary
uncle bruce passed
aunt yvonne @ the funeral
great grandma woods house
ida wood

significant things have happened in the last few weeks. an anniversary, a baby's birth and a death in the family.

*c.j. and i have been married for 14 years. i have to say we had a really nice, relaxed anniversary.

*sandra and chuck welcomed their 5th and last baby into their family. little john david saunders. i like the pic that chuck sent right after he was born {above}. he is so squishy and content looking. i'm here!!

*uncle bruce died. he was grandpa wood's sister yvonne's husband, but we called him uncle bruce. he was the most wonderfully interesting man. adventurous, adventurous, adventurous. he was a geologist and was a pioneer in the yukon. he flew helicopters, developed ski resorts, travelled the world and knew every crazy limerick and would recite them at all family gatherings. it was so sad to hear he had died. right in his own backyard pruning bushes. his funeral in taber was lovely, aunt yvonne was so cute and i am sure was blessed with comfort from above. they have lived in great grandma woods house since she passed in the late '80's. i honestly don't think i have been in that house since that time. i always have wanted to go snoop around the place just to think of old times and recollect. after the funeral, we walked across the street to the house, i took a picture of the place and walked up the driveway. lots of relatives where there, milling around, it was a beautiful day. i walked up the stairs and passed through the door and was stopped in my tracks. it smelled just like grandma. it was such a intense experience, i just couldn't move. i was frozen, the smell was so familiar and overpowering. i just expected to hear grandma shuffling around. i caught my dad's eye as he saw me stuck there in the entry and i shook my head with tears in my eyes. i eventually made my way in. her little kitchen, the living room, the tiny hallway and bedrooms. i looked at all the pictures and trinkets of aunt yvonne and uncle bruce's. family pictures, rocks and minerals, music and books. that is where i found the picture of grandma with her big smile {above}. i loved her so much.

i could only stay in the house for a few minutes, i felt slightly out of place as extended family began to fill the rooms and i felt too overwhelmed with emotion. i really just wanted to sit down and look around quietly for hours and hours. this experience took me off guard. it still moves me as i write this for some reason. i can't tell why, it was just so powerful.

that pretty much brings things up-to-date. on the horizon: my sister stacey, this very second, is waiting anxiously for a call from the hospital giving her the go ahead to come down and be induced. we all think she is having a girl. will let you know in my next entry. go dee go!