Until We Meet Again

I hope everyone had a meaningful Remembrance Day. Lest we forget....

Food Bank Drive

On the 16th of October the Beaumont Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints held a food drive along with Campbells and Shaw Cable.  Campbells and Shaw Cable agreed to match our wards donation.  We collected 5000 lbs of food, which means 15,000 lbs of food went to the Leduc County Food Bank!  Here's a picture of Josh and friends while we were unloading our vehicles.  The youth and children all worked really hard with their parents to drop off flyers and pick up the food. It was hard work, but lots of fun, and we were all glad to help out.  Thanks to the organizers for planning a great event.

Snow on the Scarecrow

We woke up this morning to a little bit of snow on the ground, surprise!!  Welcome to Alberta.....It snowed lightly until the afternoon.  Josh was really excited because he has been dying to go sledding, unfortunately it was too warm for much snow to accumulate.  The temperatures this week will range between 2 degrees celcius and 5 degrees celcius.  Sigh.  Ever gone trick or treating in a snow suit?  It may happen (again) this year.  The leaves aren't even off all the trees yet!!  Thank goodness Scott and I got so much yard work done this weekend, it really payed off.  Hope you are all having a pretty fall, wherever you are!

FLYing through the Holidays

Feeling stressed out at the thought of another crazy holiday season?  The Flylady has started her holiday missions this past Monday, but, as she says, you're not behind, just jump right in!  Check out http://www.flylady.net/ for Flylady's holiday missions, and to print off her free Holiday Control Journal.  Don't know who Flylady is?  Well, she is a great little lady from Southern U.S.A. who has started a home organization website that helps you get rid of clutter and set up routines to help keep your house neat and tidy, and guess what?  It works!  I've been following Flylady since we lived in Calgary many years ago, and although my house is far from perfect, my daily routines usually keep me on track.  Check it out, you won't be sorry!  Especially this time of year, she's a real lifesaver.

The Phantom Ghost

Saturday night we were all watching a movie when the doorbell rang.  It was quite late for a visitor, and Justin ran up the stairs to see who it was.  No one was there, but there was a gift bag on our doorstep full of goodies, with a poster of a ghost that said "We've Been Spooked", and a set of instructions.  The Phantom Ghost had struck!!  We were instructed to do the same to two other families.  So this evening for family night we got two gift bags ready with treats, made our ghost posters and got ready to strike!  It was hard to decide which families to target, but we managed to narrow it down.  Josh and Scott hit the first victim's house.  Their black sweatshirts helped them blend into the night.  Sarah and Jeff were the next phantoms, and ran like the wind (or a gentle breeze...)  We were playing some Halloween tunes in the van to make it seem more festive.  Is Kung-Fu Fighting a Halloween song?  Scott and I were debating this.  He said it's not spooky, and that I just like the song.  I said some people dress up like ninjas so it's appropriate.  He's right, though.  I do like the song.  We also listened to Ghostbusters and Thriller.  It was lots of fun. After a few minutes we decided to see if our packages had been picked up, and they had been!  In fact, one house had their phantom already hanging in their window.   Here's the poem we attached to our treat bags:

The Phantom Ghost


The Phantom Ghost has come to town,

To leave some goodies as I see you've found.

If you do not wish a curse to fall,

Continue this greeting, this phantom call.

First, place this Phantom where it can be seen,

And leave it there 'til Halloween.

This will scare other Phantoms who may try to call,

Be sure to participate - you'll have a ball!

Second, make 2 treats, 2 Phantoms, and 2 notes like this,

Deliver them to 2 neighbors who might have been missed.

Don't let them see you, be sneaky and quick,

The hardest part is deciding whose house to pick.

Third, leave at the door where there is no light,

Ring the doorbell, run, stay out of sight.

Be happy, have fun and come join the season,

The best kind of tricks are the ones that are pleasin'.

And remember this one very important fact,

YOU ONLY HAVE ONE DAY TO ACT!




Love Food, Hate Waste

I was chatting on the phone with my mum this evening, and she told me about a great new website she's found, called Love Food, Hate Waste.  I checked it out, and it's a great website that helps you plan meals to reduce your food waste, good for the pocketbook, good for the environment!  Here's the link:  http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/

Enjoy!

Badges

This is a picture of a Cub Scout uniform, Canadian version. I have to sew on some new patches on a new Cub Scout shirt this evening. It's so complicated they have to map it out for us in the front of the manual, and still I have mixed it up, and spent some time this morning ripping badges off the wrong sleeves.

I spent two hours this morning sewing on Cub badges. Why, you ask? Because I procastinated all summer long, knowing that fall was just around the corner, and Investiture happens every fall, and the boys need their newly earned badges sewn on their sashes. So this morning, repenting the fact that I did not sew on the badges every time they brought one or two home, I sewed, poked my fingers, muttered to myself, and sewed some more. I sewed on two of these, one on each sash. This is the World Conservation Badge

This is the astronomy badge, and they had to be sewn on as well. Sigh. It's all worth it, though, because Josh was beaming when I tossed him his sash after school. I love my boys!

Family Home Evening Treat - Chocolate Cake in a Mug!

It's family night, and that means Mum (me) is scrambling for good ideas again. I came across this recipe on the Tasty Kitchen website. Chocolate Cake in a Mug! Something everyone will eat and every kid can make.

Here's the recipe:

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

2 tbsp. cocoa

3 tbsp. milk

3 tbsp. oil

3 tbsp. chocolate chips

1 dash vanilla.

Grease and flour a large mug (the biggest mug you can find, or split between two regular sized mugs.) Mix ingredients in bowl, pour into mug, microwave on high for three minutes, turn out on plate, top with ice cream or whip cream or whatever else you can find that goes well with chocolate cake, and enjoy!

I tested this cake this afternoon, and just as the microwave beeped, our cub leader rang the door bell, just in time to taste test the cake! We agreed it was pretty good for a three minute microwave recipe, the cake was nice and spongy, and the chocolate chips were scattered through the cake and were melted and runny, yum! A good activity for family night or cub night or whenever you really want a quick chocolate cake. Now, this is not going to replace molten lava cake, or black midnight chocolate cake, or any other truly superior cake recipe. But for what it is, it's pretty good stuff! Is it good to know that you can make a chocolate cake in three minutes, however.......only the scale will tell!

"Come Thou Fount" Mormon Tabernacle Choir

General Conference Weekend was great! The speakers were amazing, and I can't wait to get the conference issue of the Ensign in November so I can really study all the great talks. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir was inspiring, so I thought I'd post a favorite clip of theirs for everyone to enjoy. We started off Conference Sunday with homemade egg mcmuffins (yum! I had two {blush}). Jeffrey and I organized a little game to help him and Joshua stay focussed for the session. We put jelly beans in a bowl. Jeffrey labelled a piece of paper with the different colors of jelly beans, and then put a corresponding gospel word (i.e., prayer) beside each color. Every time they heard that word spoken, they picked out the corresponding colored bean, and placed it in a little bag. At the end of the session, we counted the beans to see which topic was most popular, and prayer won! Happy Conference!

Thanksgiving

Now that the vacation pictures are all successfully posted, I can rejoice and focus on the fact that autumn has arrived in Beaumont, AB. The leaves are turning color, and falling rapidly. Pumpkins are piled up in the grocery stores. Scarecrows are perched in gardens. We've had more than one hard frost, so most of the vegetable gardens and annual flowers have been removed. My freezer is full of good things we grew in our garden, and lots of applesauce and apple pie filling from our abundant apple trees. Turkeys everywhere are trembling. No, turkeys aren't that smart. Turkeys everywhere are happily eating, oblivious to the fact that their days are numbered! Autumn is my favorite season, and Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. All the good things about the holidays, and no crazy shopping! (Although I could not find any canned pumpkin when I went to get my groceries the other night, so maybe a little crazy shopping!) Here's wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday next weekend!

Ferry Boat Ride

We took a ferry boat ride from Halifax to Dartmouth, got off the ferry, and got right back on again, and went back to Halifax. We're cra - z that way, people.

We saw a really big boat.

We admired the waterfront.

We looked at the bridges.

Jeff was having a good time!

Sarah and Maddie were taking pictures.

Josh was eating Freak Lunch Box candy and enjoying the ride. I believe he was enjoying a can of Toxic Waste candy at this moment.

We saw Theodore the Tugboat. When Jason was four, Theodore was a big deal. We used to go down to the government wharf in Herring Cove to watch the pilot boats come in. Just like on the tv show.

Josh is suffering the aftershocks of a mouthful of Toxic Waste.

The Freak Lunch Box

A big highlight for Jeff and Josh was a trip to the Freak Lunch Box, a really weird candy store on Barrington Street. You can get lots of retro candy here, it's heaven for someone who grew up in the seventies and eighties. If you are scared of clowns, this is not the store for you.

This store is always packed with people. Mmmm, chocolate!

Jeff the muscle man.

That is the face of someone who is going to bring you a world of pain.

Seriously, if you don't like clowns, run.

The best candy in town, no kidding!

The Streets of Halifax

Here are some shots from when we wandered through Halifax on our vacation. I like this mural that was on the side of a building in an alley. Pizza Corner #1

Pizza Corner #2

The Black Market. If you're looking for earrings, this is the place to go.

Living Statue

August 10th, part 3. As we were leaving the Public Gardens, this lovely girl was standing motionless on Spring Garden Road. She was part of the Busker Festival, a living statue. If you wanted her to move, you put some money in her bucket and she would do something.

Josh put money in her bucket, and she motioned for him to kiss her hand. So he did. Our Josh is not shy.

She was delighted!

Farewell, Josh.

Isn't she pretty?

The Public Gardens

Part 2 of August 10th, the big trip to the city. We went to meet "Great" Aunt Holly at the public gardens. Cheese!

Here's Aunt Holly with me and all the kids, including cousin Madeleine.

The Public Gardens are a beautiful spot in the middle of the city.

Lunch on the Wall

August 10th was the big trip to Halifax. First on our list of things to do was lunch at the Public Library, otherwise known as fish and chips on the wall. My brood was a little confused at first, until dad explained that everyone has to eat fish and chips on the wall outside the library at least once in their life. Mmmmm, Bud the Spud is the best! Everyone got the hang of it pretty quick.

Ah, Halifax, you're a grand old towne.

Scott told Josh to go stand in front of Winston, and this is what Josh came up with.

While we ate, we listened to a great jazz band. Cheers to the old towne!

The Look-Off

August 9th, part 2. We drove up to the Look-Off where you can get a great panoramic view of the Annapolis Valley. Nova Scotia is such a beautiful province.

Down below you can see all the farms, vineyards and orchards. Sigh.

Here's a shot of the children and I, those leafy branches behind us are not bushes, they are the tops of full grown trees on the drop off behind us. I was not hugging Josh, I had a death grip on him because I didn't want the baby to fall to his leafy death.

Scott apparently didn't share those same fears.

Jason caught by surprise. It's the best way to get a picture of the boy.

Blomidon

The continuing stoooorrryyyy of our vacation to NS in August. This is August 9th, the day we went to Blomidon, in the valley. Blomidon is so pretty, we love to go there. We love everything about it, until I remember that our feet, shoes and other stuff will be stained red. Oh, well, the price you pay, I guess.

Sarah and I saying "Ewwww, gross!" Sludge between the toes is such a squishy gooshy feeling.

Footprint in the mud.

The tide was on its way out, and I'm always surprised by how fast the tide goes in and out at Blomidon.

Six of the MacIntyre seven walking the beach. Jason was the only one bright enough to keep his sandals on.

Josh is following in Jason's big footprints.

Sarah was really sunk in the mud here, and not sure how she felt about it!

Justin walking the cliffs.

Joshua perched on a ledge.

Scott relaxing in the sun.

Jeffrey strolling along the beach. We had a great time at Blomidon, and then headed off to the Look-Off. The valley is a pretty little piece of heaven, that's for sure.