a case for kindle...

His pile...left.

Her pile...right.

We worked our way through our respective stacks of books while on vacation.

There's a reason why her luggage takes up more space than his.

I'm just saying!

Kindle e-reader...

a traveller's best friend.

Speaking of reading...
I'll give you my top three picks from 'her pile'.

1. I'll start with one that we listened to as an audio book while driving.  Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies is the story of the woman who helped hide Anne Frank and her family.  Spell-binding...it made the miles slip by quickly!
2. Choosing to See by Mary Beth Chapman.  Mary Beth is the wife of recording artist Steven Curtis Chapman and shares her journey of struggle and hope following the very tragic loss of their young daughter.
3.  Heaven is For Real by Todd Burpo.  My daughter-in-law recommended this book...and we found it at Costco.  It's a quick read...of a little boy's trip to heaven and back during surgery. 

I read others...some were good for laughs, others were most intriguing...but these three were the most inspirational!

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

a good read....

A book becomes so much more interesting if it involves places you have visited...or people you know...or is about a topic that is close to your heart.  I rather like to read biographies and autobiographies from time to time.  It seems real life is much more interesting than fiction!

I'm reading a book right now called 'Pilgrim of the Heavenly Way'...the autobiography of Daniel Smith...a Plymouth Brethren missionary to Asia for many decades in the past century.  Daniel was born in Yorkshire England to Scottish folks...and tells of the series of extraordinary events that started him on the 'heavenly road' and eventually to China's Yunnan province to work among the Nosu tribes.  He was preoccupied with his work...and never gave a second thought to marriage.  But one day God gave him the name of Catherine McGlashan...and for more than two years he knew she was to be his wife...though he had never met her and did not know who she was.  God's ways are perfect...and eventually he met Catherine while travelling in West Yunnan.  He found her walking alone in a garden one day...and told her his story.  Three days later they were engaged...

 Daniel and Catherine Smith

...and soon they were partners on the mission field!  It was in the mountainous region of northern Yunnan...far from civilization and with no medical help nearby...that their first child (a daughter named Roxie) was born. 

 I won't tell you the whole story...but I find it most interesting...since it happens to be my daughter-in-law's grandfather who is telling his life story.  I never had the opportunity to meet him, since he was 'promoted to glory' long before Broni became part of our family.  But I met his wife...Cathie...Broni's sweet little grandma Smith on several occasions.

 Cathie ~ Broni ~ Roxie 1996

Roxie lives nearby...and we share three sweet grandchildren...and so it is most interesting to read the family history and to see what stories dwell in other branches of my grandchildren's family tree.

Daniel Smith spent his entire life in the ministry.  When the doors to China were closed after the Communist takeover...he worked among the peoples of India and Sri Lanka.  In his book he humbly shares how God worked in and through him during his life.

He dedicates his book to his loving wife Catherine and to his four children 'whom, I pray, I shall meet amidst the unutterable glories before the face of our Saviour, the Lord Jesus, and to their husbands and wives...and to our grandchildren whom, we pray, shall follow on in the highway to heaven'.

Daniel Smith had no great-grandchildren when he wrote his life story...but I am sure his prayer of dedication covers Emme, Spencer, and Ryder as well.  What a blessing to have godly ancestors...who have set such a good example for those who come after.

ETA ~ 'Pilgrim of the Heavenly Way' was originally published in 1979...but was re-published in 2010 by Granted Ministries Press of Hannibal, Missouri and is available on their website.

and the cookbook goes to...

Thanks to all of you for your response...to the Mennonite Girls Can Cook cookbook giveaway!
 

I wish I could send one to each of you...and you would tell your friends and they would tell their friends...and a few less children would go to bed hungry as a result.  (As you know, the author royalties from the sale of the cookbook are going to feed hungry children in the Ukraine.)    But...unfortunately...I am only giving away one cookbook today.  And so I called in my most unbiased assistants to make the draw.

However...they seemed quite befuddled by the whole process...and were quite concerned that they would miss their connecting flight.  And so...in the end...I used the on-line random number generator to pick my winner.

And the cookbook goes to...commenter #52...Corinne!

Her comment...I don't have one yet!! I would love one!! My very Mennonite grandma owned a bakery called Grandma's Baking in southern AB and made her own cookbook. Problem is, all her recipes are so huge that by the time I try to split things up, it's not quite the same! So I am always coming back to your site to find the many of the same favorites, but in a smaller quantities...would love a hard copy of the book! Wonderful work ladies!

Corinne...please send me an e-mail with your contact info, and I'll get your cookbook in the mail ASAP.  If any of you know who Corinne might be...give her a nudge.  If I don't hear from Corinne by Wednesday night...I will choose another winner. 


Also, in response to the readers who are wondering if the cookbook is available in Australia...I understand the cookbook can be ordered on Amazon UK with free shipping to Australia on orders over 25 GBP. You might want to check that out.

And that brings my cookbook giveaway to an end.  I so appreciated all of your kind comments.  Thanks for stopping by...and may you all have a cookbook in your hand one day soon!  (If you hurry over to Vee's blog...you have a chance to enter her cookbook give-away today.)

a holiday give-away...

It's a holiday weekend here in Canada.
  

Victoria Day.

On the farm, it's not much of a holiday...

since there is much to be done at this time of the year.

So I'm thinking I'll celebrate with a give-away.

 And the prize is...

 ...a Mennonite Girls Can Cook cookbook.

I think everyone I know already has one.

From these gals in Manitoba...

who thought it made great Sunday afternoon reading material...

to family in the Okanagan...

...and those close to home.

Even my musician nephew decided he needed to have a cookbook all his own...

...and my niece in Australia has a copy.

But here's the thing...

whether you have one or not...

doesn't matter to me.

Just leave a comment on this post sometime over the long weekend...

and tell me why you might possibly want another cookbook...

and your name goes in the draw.

I'll be announcing the winner on Tuesday morning.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend...

and if it's not much of a holiday for you...

have a wonderful weekend anyhow!

of gift shops and cookbooks...

I still think I live in a small town...where nothing slips by un-noticed.  So how is it, that I just discovered this little gift shop over the weekend?
 

Winks ...on location for four years and it had somehow missed my radar screen.  It's one of those places that smells heavenly...and has room after room chock-full of wonderful goodies for your home...or for your friend's home!  Why...I even found a souvenir from Paris.
 

It was much simpler bringing it home from the gift shop...than dragging it around from one flight to another a few months ago.

And here's what else I found out.  Winks will be carrying the new Mennonite Girls Can Cook cookbook...just as soon as it is off the press.  So if you happen to live in my community...you might just want to go visit Winks in about a month's time...and leave with a cookbook in your shopping bag. 

And for all the rest of you who are wondering where they will be available for purchase...check out Amazon.ca (in Canada) or Amazon.com (in the USA).  The cookbook is now available for pre-order on both those sites. 

It's Monday. Have a great day!

my collection of great canadian literature....

They may have Martha...and Paula...and the Barefoot Contessa...but we have our own favorites here in Canada. Have you ever heard of Jean Parè...an Alberta native who has become a household name in Canadian kitchens over the past few decades? She is the author of an entire library of Company's Coming cookbooks...and I must admit that I have a goodly number of her books on my shelf.
For many years Jean had a catering business in her hometown of Vermillion, Alberta...and with her success came the constant request for recipes. That led to the publishing of her very first Company's Coming cookbook in 1981...and a new one annually for the next six years. Today they are more than eight Company's Coming cookbooks published every year. (Unfortunately my library won't have room for them all!)

Jean's positive attitude, warm personality and her down-home recipes have helped to make her Canada's most popular cookbook author. She has sold over 27 million cookbooks....is the recipient of many awards and was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada...our country's highest lifetime achievement honour.

I still remember the first Company's Coming cookbook that I owned...it was called Muffins and More...and became a fast favorite! Someone must have needed that book more than I did...

...as I see it is no longer on the shelf.

My most recent CC addition is Healthy in a Hurry....which was a gift from a dear friend not so long ago.

It's a collection of nourishing recipes that can be on the table in 30 minutes or less....I like that kind of fast food. I've tried several of the recipes recently...

...including a new way to cook brussels sprouts...a vegetable that finds it's way into my shopping cart only when hubby comes along to the grocery store. Dressed up with bacon, red onions, herbs and olive oil...and broiled for some 20 minutes...they become almost delicious!

Yesterday we had 'sesame pork skewers' served with 'fragrant rice'...simply special!

If you have need of one more cookbook...I'd recommend one from the Company's Coming family. And if you are just visiting Canada...and need a good souvenir...let me suggest you take home a Company's Coming cookbook. Is it possible to have too many cookbooks?

one potato...two potato...and more

It's just over the last few years that I discovered sweet potato fries...and they are one of my favorite treats. I like to keep a bag of sweet potato fries in the freezer...ready to pop in the oven at a moment's notice. On their own they may not be that special....

...but served along with a garlic mayo dip...they are superb. For the dip I add two cloves mashed garlic to about 1/2 cup mayo, a shot of fresh lemon juice and a dash of cayenne. Never mind the burgers...just pass the fries!

Speaking of potatoes...there is a movie out that I will highly recommend. Faith Like Potatoes is an award winning film released in 2006...and based on the true story of a Zambian farmer who moves his family to South Africa to start a new life. He faces many challenges...but meets them head-on with a strong faith in God. Check out the preview here...or better yet...rent the DVD and watch the movie in it's entirety!

And...sticking with the potato theme...you might just be interested in reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. It takes you back to post-war England and the island of Guernsey...a most delightful novel steeped in history. It was my vacation read this summer...and I quite enjoyed it.

One potato...two potato...three potato...no more!

Enjoy the day...

unpacking a good summer read

I'm busy packing...it's time to get the RV ready to hit the road. So it was with great joy...that I discovered a package left behind by the mailman. I knew exactly what amazon.ca might be sending me...

...it was my vacation reading material. And it arrived just in the nick of time!

A few books for her...a few books for him...and "The Farm Chicks in the Kitchen"...which I am looking forward to breaking into real soon!

We are off on a camping adventure today...with two three-year-olds who have never been camping! I'm thinking there won't be much time to read...maybe just a few pages of 'Farm Chicks'. Then for the weekend...we will make our way to the desert...to join family at a cherry orchard campground. How much better can it get?

Sometime this summer...I plan to read those books!

when they pull the plug...

So what exactly do you do when the lights go out? I was just finishing up lunch yesterday when the power went off. The coffee was still hot and the conversation was still good...but once lunch was over...reality set in. I could not go back to my work in the office...the Revenue Canada web page had long since disappeared!

I decided to call B.C. Hydro and inform them of our outage. Oops...the cordless phone was not working...nor was the office phone working...

...but I did manage to find a bedroom phone that was just a plain old-fashioned no-frills phone...with a dial tone. (It wasn't actually the phone in the picture...but I wish I still had one of those!) So, after being informed that the power would be off for a few hours...I tried to think of things to do that didn't require electricity. Hmmm...I came up blank! Well, I could always make phone calls...from the bedroom. And so I did. The numbers I needed were on the computer...but I found I still knew how to look them up in a phone book. Several times during my phone conversations, I ran to the office for the required information...and returned to my wired down phone. This was far too much work!

Well...since I was in the bedroom anyhow...and I had a drawer full of books waiting to be read...why not just take a reading break until the power was restored? Just as I was contemplating which book to crack open...

...the power came back on! It looks like the books will have to wait for another day...but I'll show you the options. I keep books in my nightstand...though I'm not sure why, because I don't do a whole lot of reading in bed.

At the top of the pile is a John Grisham book...and now that I'm reading the jacket, I know why I haven't yet read a Grisham book that's been out there for more than a year! It's about football...and I could think of other topics I'd sooner get into.

Next is an Elizabeth Goudge book called "the Dean's Watch"...which I have started...barely. Elizabeth Goudge writes historical novels...'enchanting and something of a fairy-tale' so it says on the back.

Then is "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. I bought the book after seeing the author interviewed by Oprah...and thinking it was the story of the love between a father and his son. I have never read it, since both my son and son-in-law informed me it was rather dark...and not likely something I would enjoy. Now I've put it back on my reading pile after having it recommended by trustworthy sources.

Lois Hole's 'Perennial Favorites' has been in my nightstand since we started landscaping almost four years ago. It's fun to spend a few minutes in her book now and again...there's always something to be learned from our Canadian gardening expert.

And at the bottom of the pile is a brand new book called "Bill Vanderzalm...For the People"...the autobiography of British Columbia's 28th premier (a most colourful character). It's a book I ordered for my dad...who happens to be one of Bill's greatest fans...and arrived complete with Mr. Vanderzalm's signature. But, if I treat it with the greatest of care...I should be able to preview it just a wee bit before passing it along.

So those are the books that I may...or may not...be reading sometime soon. The lights are back on...as is the dishwasher...the television...the computer...and all those blinking clocks that I need to re-set. The books will wait! But go over and visit In a Garden ...who is hosting a 'what's on your night table' show-and-tell this week.

Have a wonderful day...

this and that...

My memories of the fifties are more about running barefoot on carefree summer days and listening to children's fables on the radio than wearing poodle skirts and idolizing Elvis. But a few days ago, I had a chance to relive those fabulous fifties, along with all those who volunteer in any capacity at our church. The church staff and leadership sponsored a wonderful fifties-themed evening as a thank-you to the many who work tirelessly in so many ministries throughout the year.

Some arrived in their fifties cars...others wore their poodle skirts and oxfords...and all were served fifties fare by our friendly pastoral staff. Then came a surprise visitor from the past...who said Elvis was dead? He was very much alive the other night...

...he had no trouble maneuvering about on the table-top with his blue suede shoes! It was a fun time...and it's OK to have fun at church once in awhile. Elvis actually resides in my hometown...and is also known as Steve Elliott. He takes his show on the road throughout the US and Canada and if he's on your road, be sure to 'take a listen'.

* * * * * * * * * * *

On a totally different topic...I have a book recommendation. I just finished reading 'Mistaken Identity"...the story of Laura Van Ryn and Whitney Cerak, who are in a fatal car crash that claims multiple lives, and the wrong girl is identified as the survivor. Five weeks later, when the survivor emerges from a coma, the mistake is discovered. That this could actually happen is unbelievable! Both families have a strong faith in God...which is evident throughout the ordeal. It's definitely worth reading.

* * * * * * * * * *

So what’s going up behind my house…
Could it be a gift from my spouse?

Yahoo…say I and my grandkids too,
We’ve been waiting to see what this pole can do.

If you know the function of this dual-purpose pole,
Just leave me a comment as to it’s role.

Once it’s firmly in place…and doing it’s duty,
I’ll show you my post in all it’s beauty!

Have a great weekend!

knitting nell...

When I saw the title of the book, I couldn't resist! My mother-in-law had no idle time...when she sat, she was either knitting or crocheting. And her name was Nellie...how fitting. I have a sister-in-law who also loves to knit...also named Nell!

And I have three granddaughters who know nothing about knitting...but love books, so I thought it would be perfect. It's a wonderful book about friendship, giving back, and of course knitting. Nell is a sweet girl who loves to knit and makes wonderful gifts for others in need. While her friends complain about their problems, she knits. She teaches others about generosity, compassion and the importance of giving to those less fortunate. What Nell doesn't do is talk a lot . . . not until a small, unexpected moment in the limelight changes her life. It's a great, beautifully illustrated story.

The girls are a little young to learn how to knit, but I picked up a knitting loom (sort of like spool knitting) and one of these days we'll give that a try.

It's called a Knifty Knitter and comes with instructions for making a small hat. They love projects!

Our own 'Knitting Nell' just returned from a few months in the sun...bearing gifts for my grandchildren.

As usual, her hands have been busy...as usual, she is being generous! The girls were all excited about their new scarves and hats...but since they are in Easter colours, I'm thinking they will be part of our Easter egg hunt this year!

Ryder's hat was perfect for him too...

...and he was quite happy to model his hoodie sweater...also a gift from great aunt Nellie!

And I just had to throw in this picture of Nellie Avenue...taken on a very wet spring day somewhere on the Oregon Coast. With a few Nellies in the family, I thought it might come in handy some day. Nell or Nellie is one of those old-fashioned names that has become a popular baby name in recent years.

So that's my tribute to all the 'knitting nells' out there!

book fare...

It's that time of the year when we just want to cozy up by the fire with a good book. It's also a good time of the year for 'book hunting'. Our local Rotary club is hosting it's annual book sale this week, so I just had to head down to the mall and check it out. One never knows what books one may find...or maybe, which books find us!

They offer over 100,000 books...all sorted, stacked, priced and packed. The club raises over $60,000 in this one week for local projects, scholarships and group exchanges. Rotarian's do a lot of good in the community, so I never feel bad about supporting the book club. First I buy books...and when I run out of room on my shelves, they get my discards! And all for a good cause.

Most books are $1, $2, or $3...but I noticed the antique books were priced much higher. I'm always on the lookout for vintage collector books...like these that I found in a quaint little bookstore in Nakusp for $2 each.


They are classics from the early 1900's in great condition. I love that Jack's Aunt Gladys left her inscription in this edition of Robinson Crusoe on Dec. 1924...in her own flowery script.

I thought I might find an old reader or two...but no such luck. The Dick & Jane series that I remember so well, are now selling for close to $100 each. I picked up a set of four new release "Dick & Jane' readers at a local grocery store a few years back; Emme and Spencer are enjoying them.

The Rotary club must be aware of bargain hunters looking for the collector books, because there were no good deals this year!

I left the antique section and checked out the paperbacks. When we moved a few years back, I decided to take all our paperbacks to the 'book sale' barrel. Little did I know that Elmer really hadn't planned to part with his Wibur Smith book collection! Oops. So I've been buying them back at used bookstores over the past few years. I was in luck...one more Wilbur Smith for the shelf!

This book caught my eye, only because it's written by a local Canadian author. W.P. Kinsella wrote Shoeless Joe,which was the basis for the movie "Field of Dreams". He now lives in Chilliwack and plays scrabble in his spare time...also writes a column for the Vancouver Province every week.

No, Kinsella never made it into my basket! I had a fun time snooping through the old books, and after an hour I came home with my goody bag. One Wilbur Smith, two James Patterson, and about ten pounds of Martha Stewart Living magazines. Now we both have something to read on vacation! The total damage was $10 and I have not even a twinge of remorse.