it's a new day...

It is also a New Year!

The old is in the past...

though not soon forgotten.

We cooked our New Year's Fritters portzelky...

and ate them too.

We even shared them with some friends and neighbours.

Now it is time to get back to the routine...

the one that includes a wee bit more exercise...

and a whole lot less eating!

The new calendar is hanging in it's place...

with events marked on it's pages which I am looking forward to.
And others...not so much!

I also know that many things will come my way that are not on the calendar...

things that God only knows.

My prayer is that I can view each day as a gift...

make the most of every opportunity...

and live my life to glorify God. 

Enjoy the day.

It is still officially a holiday.

a look back on the year that was...

As the year draws quickly to a close....

will do my annual rear-view mirror post.

January 1, 2012 began for us under the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

From there it was on to Kenya...

an amazing experience!

February ~ the eagles and snow-capped peaks of home.

March ~ the first wiener roast of the year.

April...a trip across the mountain pass to retrieve Kris's vehicle following his accident.

May ~ Mennonite Girls Can Cook book launch celebration.

June ~ the latest we have ever planted corn on our farm...
due to a very wet spring.

July ~ we welcome Baby Lucy

We celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary.

September ~ a trip up the Sunshine Coast

October ~ we are thankful for family and the harvest that was late, but plentiful.

November ~ Yosemite National Park and Palm Springs

As the sun sets on another year...
I realize again how much I have to be thankful for!

Soon we will be opening the door on a new year.
I'm a little fearful of stepping through.
But I know Who goes before me...
and His mercies are new every morning.

Happy New Year to all of you...
my blogging friends!

around the table and more...

With Thanksgiving weekend falling in the middle of our fall harvest this year...

it was decided that we would gather around the table on Sunday for dinner.

The table was set and ready for the family to arrive...

when the sun came out!

Aha...perfect for a quick family photo before dinner...

thought the mother!

First to arrive was Maggie...

well, she came with the rest of her family in tow, actually.

She had no trouble finding her crab apple place card on the table...

and immediately settled in her chair.

She spent a little time re-arranging things...

and once it was all just right...

she ran to play.

Before the rest arrived...

I thought we should try out the lighting...

and find a backdrop for the family photo.

Lucy agreed to be our model...

and then promptly fell asleep.

The rest of the gang arrived fifteen minutes later...

and I herded them all outdoors for a photo.

Where's Lucy?

'I am NOT waking her up just before we have dinner'.

So said her Mama.

Hmmmm.

What are the chances of getting everyone to pose for me again before Christmas?

We had a fine time around that table!

 The kids ran off to play...

and the rest of us re-counted some of our many blessings.

 

And what exactly was all that noise upstairs?

They were playing with Brewster ~ The Rooster.

Brewster has been around for over four decades.

He was once a source of amusement for our nieces and nephews...

and then later our own children...

when they visited their grandparents. 

He was purchased for $6.00 back in the day.

Truth be told...

he scares the kids a little.

But they like that!

It was a good time...
together with family for Thanksgiving.

of giving thanks...

All that we behold is full of blessings.  

~William Wordsworth

He who thanks but with the lips
Thanks but in part;
The full, the true Thanksgiving
Comes from the heart.
~J.A. Shedd

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson 

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. 

~Thornton Wilder

 

Let us remember that,

as much has been given us, 

much will be expected from us, 

and that true homage comes from the heart as well as from the lips, 

and shows itself in deeds.  

~Theodore Roosevelt

A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, 

but the parent of all the other virtues.  

~Cicero

Thanksgiving is possible only for those who take time to remember; 

no one can give thanks who has a short memory.  

~Author Unknown
  

As we celebrate Thanksgiving here in Canada this weekend...

may we all take time to remember the blessings of this past year.

And then...

give thanks!

From my front porch to yours...

Happy Thanksgiving!

on eating out...

We have many eateries in our little town...with more popping up all the time. That's a far cry from the way things were in my childhood...when we had two restaurants that I recall.  The Peaks...and The Twin Peaks!   It really never mattered to me in those days...since we never went out to eat as a family.  Our big outings were for DQ ice-cream cones!

Things have changed over the years...and though our favorite place to eat is usually at home...it is fun to let someone else do the cooking from time to time. There are many great options out there!

We have an amazing Indian restaurant in town......so worth a visit.

And if I'm with the girls...

...we head to Apeldoorn's for lunch or tea coffee.  It's always special (even the washroom!).

Last summer on our road trip to Colorado...we found this quaint little restaurant in Manitou Springs, Co. 

It looked rather hippyish to me, but what caught my eye was the big sign advertising Yerba Matè.  Now that happens to be my son-in-law's drink of choice, so we went in to check out the place.  We never went so far as to actually order anything, but we picked up a brochure.   It reminded me of a little cafe back home...one that also advertises yerba matè. We decided to check out our version once we were back from vacation.

Since that time...we have been to this little establishment several times for lunch.  Though I have yet to try yerbe matè...the salads and breads are excellent.  Everything is made fresh on site. And yes...it is a sister cafe to the one we discovered in Manitou Springs...all owned and operated by the same organization.

We don't eat out that often, but when we do...it's fun to try something a little special!   We are so blessed to have such a variety of foods and eateries to enjoy.  And we are grateful.

Have a wonderful weekend...

what a card...

I thought I had managed to slip into my next year without the hoopla this time...since I celebrated my birthday in relative obscurity at a resort near Mombasa.  I witnessed the dining staff singing 'happy birthday' to an unsuspecting diner earlier that week...and extracted a promise from hubby that he would not make put me through that!  And so on my birthday...we walked the beach in the morning, had a gourmet breakfast, lounged around the pool with some good reading, enjoyed mango ice-cream, swam in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean and and enjoyed a wonderful dinner outdoors late at night.  It was a good day...even without the birthday song! 

But now I'm home...and the kids thought I needed some birthday cake...and 'Happy Birthday to You' sung with gusto.  And cards that made me chuckle.

I could identify with this one!

And then there was one from the grands that needs a whole wall to display.

 
I smiled when I saw what was written inside...'We love you...Grammy Beana'.  I don't hear that nickname so often anymore.  It was something Emme and Spencer came up with when they were wee munchkins...and still use on occasion.

Flowers, gifts, song and dance...oh, and I had my cake and ate it too!  It's always good to celebrate with the family.  Yes, I am blessed...and look forward to what my 29th year may have in store for me.  Smile. 

Tomorrow...I'll take you back to Paris.

looking back at 2010...

As the year draws to a close...I like to look back at the year that was!

January...snow high on the peaks of  'The Four Sisters' but none in the valley.

February ~ The Winter Games 2010

March ~ vacation on the Big Island of Hawaii

 April ~ Tulips of the Valley

May ~ a bumper first crop of grass

June ~ a family picnic at Benanna Lake

July ~ a road trip to Colorado, new Mexico, and Utah.

August ~ farming and taking time to smell the flowers!

September ~ The first 'Mennonite Girls Can Cook' Summit

October ~ playing tourists in Seattle.

November ~ beautiful weather and fall leaves that hung on!

December ~ good times with friends and family...often around the table.

Year 2010...it was a good year.

I am thankful for the many blessings that have been mine to enjoy this past year.  

God is good!

The new year is just around the corner, and I am planning an extended blogging break.  For the first time in three years...I promise you I will not be posting from My Front Porch for at least a month.  Nor will I be visiting you on your front porch...or anywhere else in blogdom.  How's that for resolve?  Fear not...I will be back one day.  And in the meanwhile...you can be sure I will think of you all often...and wonder what you are all up to...but I will not peek!   I'll be missing you...all my blogging friends. 

 

With warmest wishes for 2011!