Life at Oak Grove

Yesterday I did a quick run at the local Wal-Mart because I needed some things….

When I came out of the store, I ended up behind an older lady who walked slow.

I thought of passing her but decided against it.

Part of me was impatient…. I will admit it.

But as I walked slowly behind her, I became more patient.

She had grey hair.   A pink coat. A little cart behind her that she was pulling.   She was walking alone going back to the residence near by more than likely (there isn’t any houses close by).

And when  I passed her once on the parking lot, I didn’t think much of it.

But when she was close to me has I was putting my bags in the truck she said “Nice day isn’t it”.  To which I responded “Yes it is.”

I watched her going by and going to the sidewalk toward the residence.

That’s when it hit me.   My eyes got blurred… and I thought of my own maternal grand-mother.

She walked a lot.   I believe she had a little cart as well for when she would go her groceries in the village where she lived.

She wore a pink coat.. too when she crossed the street back in 1992.  Nov 6th was the day.   She was hit by a neighbor who decided to go on the main street without looking… 

As I looked at this older lady walking away in her pink coat and her white hair, I suddenly missed my grand-mother.

She would have love my husband and the kids.

Who would have thought that my small encounter with an older lady that morning would have brought up emotions from 19 years ago.

My grand-mother was a devout catholic.    I am quite certain that I will see her in heaven.  

I can’t hardly wait for that.  

Je t’aime grand-maman!   À bientôt!

When I was younger, there was a television show that I would never miss.  It was called L’Évangile en Papier (Paper Gospels) and the guy behind it was Claude Lafortune.  He would manipulate and construct any stories from the New Testament with paper.

His creations were stunning and to be honest if I could get my hands on DVDs on this show, I would get them.   It was marvelous to see a parable get put with characters like the ones below representing the Holy Family.

Or even this one.

or…  Bébé Caprice in Quebec back in the late 70s…

I had this doll and played quite a bit with it.   It hate batteries like there is no tomorrow though – huge D ones!  But boy did I love having her crawl on her four around the living room!

What was you favorite doll when you were a little girl?

This morning – like very early because I was awake – I decided to do a board called Blast from the Past on Pinterest.

And I started thinking about what I watched as a kid, what I played with and so on…

Then I remembered getting the Princess Leia Doll one year.

She was much bigger than the Barbie dolls.   

What toy to you remember from the 70s/80s that you played with?

This week-end we made a recipe that my maternal grand-mother made often.  My mom then picked it up and blessed me with these on a yearly basis.

This week-end we made some homemade donuts…

Oh the memories attached to these yummy donuts!

So in memory of my grand-mother I wanted to share the recipe for anyone who wants to make some.

HOMEMADE DONUTS

Preparation A

1/2 cup of butter

1 1/2 cup of sugar

3 egg yolks beaten

Preparation B

5 cups of flour

1 teaspoon of salt

2 tablespoons of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg

Preparation C

1/2 cup of milk + 1/2 cup of cream 15%  (OR 1 cup of milk)

OTHER

Egg Whites

HOW TO MAKE THE DONUTS

Mix B and C into preparation A taking turns.

Add the beaten egg whites.

Put in fridge overnight and cook in the deep fryer the next day.

You will have to roll the mixture and cut the donuts.  I use a big glass for the donuts and a smaller cutter for the hole. 

Simple and easy to do….  you won’t regret it!

I personally love them with honey!

As a member of the Ultimate Blog Challenge, I receive daily e-mails containing ideas for blog posts. Today the suggestion is this one -“Who Do You Admire & Why? “

This is easy – ma maternal grand-mother, Irène Fontaine Boissé.   She was born May 1st, 1905 and died suddenly back on November 6, 1992.  

During the teenager years, I didn’t want to spend more time with her.   Now – at age 42 – I wish I had… to learn more about her past, the years during the war, the life before I met her.  87 years and 10 months of life full of events I am sure.  She grew up  witnessing so many things – television, snowmobile (she lived in the town where Bombardier created the snowmobile), cars, two world wars, industrialization, computerization and much more.

She was raised in a wealthy family  but got rejected for her choice of marriage by her own father.   And when my own grand-father was not so perfect, she stuck with him. 

She raised eight kids – one died at a very young age, another when he was a teenager.  Lived on a farm.  Took care of her husband’s father in his old age.

(in the family picture below, my mother is the young girl between her parents!)  The family house had a wrap-around porch like I would like to have!   She baked a lot, made ton of canning, sew, a fed numerous people at her table.

When I came to the world, the farm has been sold.   They have moved back to the village…   I found this photo of her and saw her beautiful smile and remember the chair she is sitting in.   When I was younger she also sacrificed so that I can pursue thing like learning to play guitar.  She would give money to my mom to help with it.   I never really see that, never realized what a jewel she was until she was gone… and some years later when I had my own kids.  

My grand-mother was a hard-working woman who didn’t have an easy life I think.  Still she persevered, prayed regularly for her family, went to church on a daily basis, was very pious and faithful.    She trusted God from what I remember.   She crocheted and knitted for everyone.  Her Christmas gifts were always products made from her own hands, woolen socks, crocheted things for your desks/tables at home.    She made a beautiful crocheted bedspread for me when I was younger (see picture on the left) – btw I still have it!.   She made quilts too!.    And I still have some of the quilts she made.  My kids have some on their beds as well.   I have old woolen bed covers she made in a patch works based on clothes she had worn or I had word.   She was gifted in many ways.  And wise as an owl! 

When she was younger (16) she painted these painting on roller blinds.  They are now on a wall in my dining room.

Today I almost wished that she could meet my family.  She would love my husband and my kids I think.     When I think about it, she is a perfect example of the Proverb 31 woman.   

On November 6th, 1992 – she was going to church for the first Friday of the month.   Not wanting to walk on her side of the street (which was the church side as well) just because she didn’t want to walk in from of the hotel (where people go to drink), she crossed the street.    Someone driving came out between two buildings and not looking much hit her… on her way to church.    She was killed instantaneously.  I was 23 years old.   Today,  I miss her dearly.   I admire who she was and hope to be able to be as patient, as pious and as a hard-worker as her.

1968 – there was a tv show named “Les meubles belles humeurs” which was for newlyweds.

My in-laws went and won a rocking chair.

In the early 2000s, my in-laws wanted to depart with it.  They were going to put the chair at the curb I think…  My husband immediately jumped on it and brought it back home. 

2008 – the chair was in our basement… taking dust.

My husband felt it was time for him to depart from this beloved chair from his youth.

So we brought it outside and proceeded to take some pictures before he brought it to the Salvation army store.

He always sat like this apparently when he was younger…

After my husband sat for the longest time ever in his chair… the boys had to try it too!

It is long gone now… somehow I am sad that we don’t have it anymore…  It would have been fun to have a picture of Jasmine on it. 

Today it is our anniversary.   Thirteen years ago we were married.   I am blessed to have my best friend beside me every day.   He is the best gift that God could have given me.  

Here’s some of the memories of this special day for us!

I don’t think I am the kind of person who will stay in the past.  But sometimes if you look back at a year that is almost finished, you can see what God has done…

And 2010 is no exception for this.  

At the beginning of the year, I decided that it was necessary for me to get into the habit of reading my Bible daily.   So using the Bible League of Canada devotional Day Planner, I followed the reading suggestions to read through the Bible during 2010.    Tomorrow is the last day and I must say that even though sometimes I didn’t feel like it and might have skipped a day here and there, I rapidly came to my senses and catched up the next day with the double readings…   And I only have four chapters of the book of Revelation to read – which is schedule for tomorrow.    I am happy to say that reading through the Bible in 2010 helped me to growth and discover a new side of God.   I am so ever glad that He is my Father in Heaven and that He adopted me as His daughter.

2010 was also a year of blessings.   As some of you know, I review products and books on my blog Canadianladybug Reviews!.   Earlier this year I was asked to rejoin the TOS Homeschool Crew for the remaining of year 2 and right away I was blessed with a geography curriculum which we had not in our homeschool.   I also extended my requests of reviews to various companies including toys and the response was above and beyond what I was expecting.     I think I have established precious relationships with them.   I also established fun relationships with PR companies and Mom Central Canada.    We shall see what 2011 will bring but I have a couple of ideas for next Fall season…

On the homeschool front, we started a bit later this past September since we were on the road with my husband due to a contract opportunity in the Northern Ontario area.    Nevertheless, we brought some work to do on the road and we visited a few museums as well.  So technically we still learned a lot.  The kids are still talking about the Zoo in Toronto and the Science North in Sudbury.  

We were able to squeeze two trips during 2010.   One in May when we went to the Boston area for a week and a three weeks road trip to Toronto – Sudbury – Elliot Lake back in August/September.    We had a blast both time (even though the first trip was mixed with sickness).   

I was blessed that my father-in-law agreed to come and build a play structure for the kids.  I don’t think our backyard was more used than this year.  It is amazing what a structure do.   But I must admit that it is a cool structure that I designed.   We bought the wood and father-in-law with hubby and eldest son worked hard on it.    Honestly, I think that if an earthquake happens, the structure will outlast the houses around… LOL

In the end, we had an interesting year on many levels.  

For 2011, I am still debating what to do for devotional.   I have an idea but I wonder if I want to tackle my plan.    I guess I see a HUGE mountain in from of me right now…   I still have one more day to decide if I jump in the water or not.

I am planning to continue homeschooling and I pray that God will continue to pour patience in me every morning.   I hope that He will also bring challenges and open opportunities for us as a family, as business owners, as a reviewer/blogger, as a wife, as a mom, as a friend and more.    I know He will bless me again in 2011.

Happy New Year everyone!

It’s Christmas Eve today and while doing my devotions I realized that it is also the 10th anniversary of the death of my dad.

He died before any of my kids were born.

But honestly I didn’t have much of a relationship with him…  You see he left my mom while I was in the 20s.  And let me tell you that separation and divorce affects children of all ages.    (I won’t go in details today though.) 

As I look back at my youth I wonder if he was ever present.   Oh!  He was there physically but emotionally that is another story.    But I don’t want to go on on his behaviour and how he was.

I just know that he passed away due to sickness (cancer) which has eaten him inside after he left.   And I don’t think I would wish that to anyone.  But it’s what happened.

But as I think of him, my earthly father, I see that he gave me a love of photography.   He always took wonderful pictures and through him I think I got a love of photography.    He also loved tennis but it wasn’t my piece of cake.  

Dad also volunteered for driving when I needed to go somewhere but he never talked much.    I say volunteered but I wonder how much my mom tried to make him spend time with me in that way.

Dad had his faults but because of him photography is part of my life and I love it.    And if you wonder – the picture his me when I was about 3 or 4 years old… taken by my father on winter day.   It is one of my favourites.

So thanks dad for giving me a lot for capturing the memories of my family.    I appreciate it.

I guess part of me regret not spending more time with him at the end of his life.  But I disagreed with his choices.   I also regret not sharing more about my Saviour with him.   

But there is no point of living in the past – I know it is not healthy from experience in my family.   So I look toward the future and ask God to guide me in building a special relationship with my kids.  

In the meantime, I want to share other pictures he took when I was younger.

This is me when I was 5 days old in 1969.

Playing in the toy box.

Summer of 69 – camping.

Christmas 69 – the famous Fisher-Price ball.   Note: the fuzzy soccer ball still lives and my kids had it when they were babies.   Not it is stored for the future grandkids.

Fall 1969 – in the woods that my uncle owned in Valcourt, QC.

Recycling 101

There are more – mostly slides.   Eventually I will scan them and have them on my PC.    He had a gift in taking pictures and somehow he was able to pass this on to me.

Thanks again dad.