ENJOYING OURSELVES AT FLORENCE, OREGON

STEEL SHEEP ELEMENT

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Hello from Florence, Oregon. This is such a beautiful place - I could easily live here. The scenery is breathtaking and the folks are friendly too. We are camped at the Washburn State Park Campsite, which is located about 10 miles north of here. We have been having a wonderful time. We took in a six mile hike yesterday from our campsite to the Hecata Lighthouse. When we looked at the hike on the map it seemed straightforward, but then it does not indicate whether its a flat hike or one that its hilly - in this case it was hilly and our legs got a great workout. The view from the highest point of the trail was worth all the hard work.

The lighthouse is a 15 minute hike to the left of this view. We sat at the lighthouse and ate sandwhiches for dinner and drank in the vista. After this we hiked on back down to the beach and slowly sauntered back so that we caught the sun as it was setting. We explored the tidepools along the way and discovered this interesting little eel, which fairly glowed!

Why don't you come along for the rest of our walk by visiting us my photo gallery at the following link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/barbaraderksen/BlogPics2

BARB'S TIP # 61

Garden With Clean Nails!

This tip has absolutely nothing to do with our vacation - but I came across it in a magazine and thought I must share it with you who may be gardening. Before you go digging about in your garden, if you don't wear gloves (which is probably the easiest way) dig your fingers into a bar of soap and let the soap bits remain under your fingernails. After gardening, simply wash your hands, letting the water remove all of the soap and the dirt will be removed along with it and your nails will be clean!

PS - praying your all having a great summer!

I MET GINA -SQUEE SQUEE SQUEE!

ME AND GINA!!!

Hello Everyone!

Just a quick note to let you know that we are well on our way and having a wonderful time on vacation! I am typing this to you from an internet cafe in Lincon City, Oregon. There is just far too much to tell you in the brief 10 mins I have left here... so I will let you browse our pics at the following link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/barbaraderksen/OurSummerVacationToJuly26th

I warn you, they are not in ANY order, so you will have to logically sort it in your mind until the I can go in and arrange them, ha ha!

We had a wonderful visit with our friend Betty from Doty, a tiny, weensy town in the very south of Washington. Thank you Betty for having us - it was awesome to see you (still the blushing bride - married just a month ago) Your family just wrapped us in hospitality and warmth and we so appreciated it.

And I got to meet Gina - my dear friend you all know from my previous blogging. It was all so fast and I've still not had it all sink in. Gina - your EXACTLY - only better than we imagined! Thanks for meeting us in such a beautiful spot - the Crown Point Vista - an unforgettable experience for me too! We look forward to seeing you on our way home, if it works out. I'm so 'cited, ha ha! Miles is looking forward to giving you a crash course in PS... and we look forward to meeting your husband and kids.

GOT TO RUN, GETTING THE LOOK FROM MILES, HA HA!

MILES PHOTOSHOOT POSTER  

PAINTING THE TOWN - NANAIMO, THAT IS...

HYDRA ELEMENT

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Hello from the road, everyone! Really, I AM missing you all, but am enjoying our vacation as well. This entry finds us in Nanaimo, BC on Vancouver Island. This is truly a gem of BC - Canada even, with lush greenery, (we love the arbutus trees!) fresh ocean breezes and a unique feel of it's own.

HEADING TO THE FERRY

We left our folks place in Abbotsford on friday, leaving early, but not TOO early - so we avoided the rush traffic. Still, it was pretty busy and the weather was moist. There were a few hectic moments toward the terminal where construction was happening on the roads, with little notice of lane closures. Its fairly tricky and you have to pay attention when you get to the terminal, so that you end up in the correct lane for the right ferry. Don't want to be heading off to some small island or anything!

We drove directly to our daughter's store in the Woodgrove mall and got parked. We took our computers in with us as we don't trust to leave them in the van. We set the alarms off in the Bay, and had to figure out what was causing that with the security gaurd. He was very helpful and he demagnetized our packs after we took our computers out. He told us that often it will be a chip that's actually been sewn into clothing or tucked in a book or something. Have you ever had an incident with a store security system?

Well...when we arrived at Dezrae's store we walked into chaos. She is in the throes of redecorating her store! There was paint EVERYWHERE and 'lil helpers working away. We rolled up our sleeves and pitched in!

MILES AND JOE TOUCH UP THE RACKS

Everything was happening in a sorta freestyle arrangement with people coming and going and not really a lot of orchestration. A lot of black paint was being tracked throughout the store and out into the hallways as well.

DEZRAE AND AMANDA SHARING ELBOW GREASE

We worked until early evening and then headed home to enjoy a tasty dinner together (we cooked, he he!) It was up and at it first thing this morning in order to give a hand at the store again. It was several hours of scraping the black, glossy, blobby paint off the floor. Helpers came and went...more went than came... We finally wrapped it up in the mid-afternoon when we took Dezrae to Canadian Tire to buy bike. We stuck it in the trunk and headed home for a 15 minute break, grabbing Miles camera. We spent the afternoon doing a photo-shoot of some models for a poster for Dezrae's store. By the time we were finished it was after 6 so we drove home, threw on our helmets and went for an hour long bike ride on the paved bike path. Dezrae got a good lashing by a blackberry bush on the trip back which left her scratched up.

ME AND DEZ WITH HER NEW BIKE

I will keep you posted as we head off to the U.S. of A tomorrow! Hello to all of you and I hope to get onto hello one of these times - can't do it here :(

BARB'S TIP # 60

Use Your Head (rest)

After struggling the first nights to locate my pajama's within the recesses of my duffelbag, I discovered that the very best place to keep one's jammies on vacation is to tuck them right into your pillowcase! Do you have a camping tip you would like to share?

WE ARE SOMEWHERE...

DECORATIVE EDGE ELEMENT

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Well, you are finding us using a wifi spot in Abbotsford, BC where we will spend a few days visiting with our Mom and Dad.

Thanks sooo much for the awesome comments you've been leaving - Leah, you really moved me. I am going to dedicate a song for you that I think you would like. I think the part that is especially powerful to me, is where she says you can't change the past, you just have to trust in God and live for today. It is sung by Natalie Grant - you can visit her site HERE.

LIVE FOR TODAY

Sittin' in my room staring at the wall

Wonderin' about the meaning of it all

Why is it this thing called life

Has got me goin' crazy

So I open up your word and let it speak to me

The purpose and the plan that you've designed

Is clear to see, and I believe

I'm gonna live for today

I'm gonna follow in your way

I'm gonna let my little light shineLike there's no tomorrow

I won't worry about the past

I know my future is intact

So I'll choose to live my life one way

I'm gonna live it for today

You told me not to worry

About what lies ahead

So I am gonna focus on today instead

Making every moment count and counting

Every single blessing

I'm gonna set my mind on theHere and the Now

This is what I want my life to be about

And this is How...

LIVE FOR TODAY

MY HANDSOME WIFE-GUARD!

First stop of vacation found us not at the campsite I wanted, that I had envisioned...but instead at an extremely expensive site in Peachland BC - as the one we wanted was full up to the top already. We decided to pay the exorbient fees at the available campsite instead as we cared more about getting a restful day in than being on the road all day. We did enjoy a nice swim and walk tho.

HANDSOME MR. WINSTON

Next stop, Kelowna BC, to visit with our lovely daughter Melanie and her clever and amusing cat Winston. We stayed for a few hours and went to lunch before we had to drop Melanie off at her college. We are VERY proud of you Mel and you keep it up!

BARRY FIXES THE AIR CONDITIONER

Now onto Kamloops. We arrive at our Brother and Sister in laws (Barry and Judy)only to find our entrance blocked by a vehicle taking up 1.5 spaces in the driveway. Miles thought to do a quick 'u - ie' on the road and slip in sideways, but the car stalled (several) times...eep, and then we could not fully pull off...so we continued around the corner and called them from the cell, and they moved the car.

We arrived to find Barry rummaging underneath his back porch, searching frantically for a missing screw with which to fix his air conditioning. Whew. He's amazing...Barry can fix just anything!

We had a very nice visit with Barry, Judy and Melissa, our niece! Even the weather cooperated by being cool - usually Kamloops is soooo HOT we can't sleep all night!

I will stay in touch w/ you all!! God Bless!

TEDDY KEEPS CARE OF MY GLASSES

We continued on this morning, taking the toll highway...and...well, here we are...sneaking this in before going to our folks.

BARB'S HINT # 59

Uses for Krazy - Glue

1. Repair a broken fingernail. Use a small drop to secure the nail in place, then coat with nail polish.

2. Fix leaks in inflatable inner-tubes, air mattresses, or air pillows. Apply Krazy Glue to seal the hole or leaky valve stem.

3. Lessen the pain of minor cuts. Apply Krazy Glue to thin cracks in the skin. The glue deprives the nerve endings of air.

'GEAR' -ING UP FOR DEPARTURE

GRANITE GEAR ELEMENT

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Yes, things are grinding down now...somehow it all comes together - and hey, thanks so much for your prayers and words of encouragement!

I've been posed the question if I will be in touch from the road - the answer is a big YES! I posted several posts ago, a website which informs me of every free wifi connection in the USA...so, though it may be more of a weekly thing, rather than a daily thing, I will stay in touch with you all!

We are blessed, as renters, to have the world's best landlords. They are more family than anything, they look out for us bigtime. We have the best of both worlds as they are snowbirds, so our house never ever sits empty or unwatched - a huge relief when your travelling. There is a spiritual message in this, I can just feel it - when we TRUST in our LORD, we can simply KNOW He is looking out for our best interests.

2 SAMUEL 7:28

O Sovereign LORD, you are God!

Your words are trustworthy,

and you have promised these good things to your servant.

PSALM 9:10

Those who know your name

will trust in you,

for you, LORD,

have never forsaken those who seek you.

PSALM 37:3

Trust in the LORD and do good;

dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

OUR FRIEND'S GIRLS

All papers and Elements by Aburns (Sample Pack)
Background Dot Element by Melissa Renfro
Grunge overlay - Tandis (Sabrina) Preville
Fonts: Pristina and Verdana

Just finished this layout and had it printed for some friends of ours! We will drop the LO's out on our way through on vacation - which is about 24 hours from now - wooo hooo, better get scurrying!

BARB'S TIP # 58

Postcards from the Road

Now that I have a little PictureMate personal photo lab, this will be tres easy for me... however even if you have access to get some of your vacation photos printed at a local store, you can make your own unique, personal postcards. What I do is print the photo, or select your photo from your printed ones, and simply draw a line down the back of the photo - dividing it in two - perhaps giving more room to the left hand side. Simply address the right hand side, add a stamp, and your personal notes on the left and voila - you have your own postcard! You can also embellish your cards with stickers or glitter pens - or other embellishments you might find in a scrapbooking store!

A LITTLE PIECE OF ME

FUZZY BOWS ELEMENT

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The hours to vacation are winding down. It feels certain to me that I will never get it done, but I know I will. Its feeling like everything is contriving against me keeping to any kind of a schedule. Can you please pray for me at this time?

Leah and her (unfinished) painting

Meet Leah, a very talented artist, part of our art group at the Osoyoos Painters and Potters. Leah is a warm and interesting friend, always quick to share parts of her interesting life, and view on life. She's travelled extensively and has a wealth to share with us. She has a wonderful sense of action in her artwork.

Leah is going through some life-changes at the moment and yesterday she took action on it in a unique way. She brought in a selection of her personal jewellrey and curios and not only showed them to us, she asked us each to pick some of it to keep! She says she is down-sizing, and rather than just giving it to a thrift, she would rather that we identify with her pieces and adopt them. I think this is such a sweet idea - we each now have a little piece of her, to think of her when we wear or enjoy it.

Leah's Jewels

I chose three small rings and she insisted I also keep a beautiful copper and brass neclace which originally came from India.

Leah, the real treasure is you. You bring a special ambiance to our group and should you find yourself somewhere other than here in the future, you will always have a place in our hearts. Thank you for your kind gesture!

I dedicate this following scripture to you as well:

Mark 6:8

These were his instructions:

Take nothing for the journey except a staff—

no bread, no bag, no money in your belts.

I believe, if you trust in the Lord to see you through this time of your life, you may lose many of your physcial possessions, but you will truly discover yourself - the unique, beautiful and special person God created you to be. When we lose some things, I often like to think it's a way we come to rely more on our faith. Thanks for the scripture you shared with me too.

BARB'S TIP # 57

Stretch Yourself

Ok, I can't live with out elastics. Trust me, if your 'out there' somewhere, elastics can do a bazillion little jobs. Make sure you buy a pack of all sizes! Here are two things I use them for, an a third interesting use which I have not had time to try - yet...

1. Roll your clothes - when your packing, some smaller items can be rolled neatly, held together with an elastic and it will be easier to find when you are searching in your dufflebag

2. Hanging clothes - if you find yourself out of clothespins (I've forgotten mine, along with the entire clothesline before) then simply take an elastic, make a corner on whatever article you are hanging, loop the elastic a few times around the material, then, loop the elastic around what you want to hang the clothing onto, then loop the elastic higher up on the material. Voila!

3. Yesterday, at Painter's group, my dear friend Helen told me you can make a very interesting paintbrush from elastics. You simply take the plastic cap from a ballpoint pen and fill it with glue (white or glue gun) and poke (using a toothpick) several small elastics into the glue. Wipe the excess glue away. Let dry. Trim ends of elastics be different lengths, then experiment away, using inks or watercolors. - Can't wait to try this one!

ACK! - CAN'T WALK IN MY FRONT ROOM!

PUFFY POM - POMS ELEMENT

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Yes, these WERE fun to make!

Well, yesterday was an adventure in patience. I set out goals for yesterday, and achieved them too, only not without some trials along the way...

Goal 1. Decorate Miles school windows.

This job ended up taking about three hours in total, whereas I had budgetted about 1 hour. The reason it got dragged, or as my friend Gina would put it, 'drug' out, is because the windows have not been cleaned since last year and so they needed to be cleaned first. BIG windows. And all the posters from last year had been pasted severely on with wads of scotch tape.

Which had been baked onto the windows for the past year.

So here's the Queen of Good Tips herself, with no good way to remove this gunky mess. Oh, I tried what I did know - I tried some oil, to no avail. I did not have a razor blade handy. No, I had to use that precious stuff - good old elbow grease. Good workout for my arm at any rate. The window looks better than what was there, though not as well as I would have liked.

Goal 2. Get my brows and upper lip de-furred. Once a year, I know - take better care of yourself, Girl - I make a pilgrimage to the salon to get my brows waxed and plucked and my upper lip waxed. This is my, albeit painful, sacrifice for my sweet husband. Hey, he shaves for me.

Thing is - I'm blessed with good, strong hair and I react to the waxing and plucking. I am sure I resemble a farm grown, freshly plucked chicken when I get done. My entire forehead comes up in welts for a day, and my upper lip 'buzzes' and I lose sensation in it. Sure looks nice though.

Goal 3. Unpack and clean the Van. Yup, the entire contents of our van is sitting all over my front room. If you want to watch tv your going to have to jump over the silverware tray, wind yourself between the bedding and tupperware. I like to do this part in one fell swoop, so I disgorge the entire contents of the van into our home. Next I give the van a good once-over with soapy bleachy water, polish the wood trim etc. I even re-hung the curtains my sweet friend Amalia sewed for me. (there are elephant print curtains - too cute - going on safari, woo hoo) I let our water containers sit for a day or two with bleach water as well - its important to have clean water all summer. I will sort the contents today, and begin restocking the van.

With all this packing I am reminded of Moses lead all the promised people out to the desert - thinking I should leave all my packs of stuffing mix, kraft dinner and tinned tuna here at home... manna ahead! I have to leave SOME food to chance...I always overpack - hauling the same cans of campbells soups around the states and home again. So it is I want to make sure to 'want' a bit ... both physically and spiritually, so that I don't forget where it all comes from. Prepare to fast a bit in the expectation of the fulfillment my Lord has for me.

Exodus 16:31

The people of Israel called the bread manna.

It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.

Dueteronomy 8:3

He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna,

which neither you nor your fathers had known,

to teach you that man does not live on bread alone

but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.

BARB'S TIP #56

Removing Scotch Tape

Duh, should have researched this yesterday! But here you have it, the tips I've rounded up on this sticky subject - so that next time I face this dilemma I can just look here!

GooGone all over the tape and let it sit for a few minutes, and it would peel off like magic. Scotts Liquid Gold also works as does WD-40. I think the key to getting the tape off, would be to work the GooGone (or whatever product you decide to use) under an edge, and as it loosens, continue working it up under the tape until all the adhesive is dissolved.

To get the tape off wooden furniture,use your hairdryer to heat it up so it can peel off.

Lowes and wal-mart also sell Crud Cutter. That works on about everything you can imagine.

For better and faster action I keep a small piece of rag soaked in a little bit of kerosene or diesel in a small bottle with a re-attachable cap, and use the rag for wiping off all such glue stains from metal and plastic and wood surfaces.

NO TIME TO CHAT - GOTTA GET PACKING!

FUN FURRY GLITTER FLOWER

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Just a quick post today - 'course I always intend them to be that way...

Thank you all so VERY MUCH for your kind comments - I appreciate 'em! If you are a first time visitor to my blog, you may notice I post all my downloads to yousendit, therefore they are only valid for a week. PLEASE tell me if there are any elements you missed and might like. If possible, I will repost them or email them to you! :)

Yesterday, as Miles and I were on our way home after walking in the cool evening air, he asked me what I intended on blogging today. I told him that, other than sharing with you all about the neat-o end-of-the-school-year-I've-been-saving-for-to-surprize-you-before-vacation present. Its a way cool little toy to take on our travels - an Epson Picture Mate Personal Photo Lab. What an amazing little piece of technology!

And its Alison's fault, really... she aquired one recently, and when Miles and I were at her place she gave us the tour - which planted the seed... he he, thank you Ali!

So, back to the point of my journalling for today, when Miles asked me what I was going to blog to you about, I told him, frankly, I did not have a clue. No sooner had we said that when good journalling-type things began to happen.

We stopped at the Painter's gallery to collect the unsold paintings which I had submitted to the Painter's and Potters Art Clearance Sale, which was held on July 1st. To my delight I noticed two were missing - so I'm assuming they were sold. Then, carrying the paintings, under arm, we stopped in at Tim Hortons (a great Canadian Tradition!) to enjoy a coffee. We had hardly crossed the threshold when we were accosted by an exhuberent French Canadian fellow who had obviously visited the bar first! He spied our artworks right away and struck up a conversation. He was very taken with one of the pencil drawings an bought it on the spot - go figure. We were concerned how he would transport it, but he tucked it into his guitar case. In conversation he claims to be the "King of the Transients" (we have a huge influx of French Canadian workers come every year. And though he informed us he has no fixed address, who are we to say he might not post that drawing up wherever he happens to find himself each day. Somehow its a sweet thought.

The second bloggable event was the dual fireworks displays we were witness to, from our front porch, no less! We live 5 mins from the USA border, and have a clear view to the end of the valley, to Oroville, Washington. Being July 4th, there was an incredible fireworks display going on. The entire time, a huge storm system was passing through, and though it shed little rain, the lightening and thunder were awesome. God's display dwarfs anything man can make. One feels so insignificant in the scheme of things when watching it all. It came to my mind that God's surround sound system for thunder just ROCKS!

EXODUS 20:18

When the people saw the thunder and lightning

and heard the trumpet

and saw the mountain in smoke,

they trembled with fear.

They stayed at a distance

I recieved a nice card in the mail yesterday from Focus on the Family with a recipe for Asian Lettuce Wraps - and they said to visit their site for fun summer ideas - so click HERE to visit and .... have fun!!

BARB'S TIP # 55

VISIT MARTHA

I dunno... I just have to tell you that I get a ton of awesome and tasteful and articulate stuff from Martha Stewart. I don't know if you've ever visited her website, but it is PACKED with great entertaining ideas, good advice and crafts, etc... you GOTTA go... just click HERE to arrive at Martha's!

HAPPY JULY 4TH NEIGHBORS!

GLITTERY AMERICAN ALPHA

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Woo Hoo for you guys to our South. Y'all are just 5 mins from us, here in Osoyoos - so in my little part of the world we visit back and forth bout as much as we visit to our north, east or west. Miles and I vacation every summer for 6 to 7 weeks, and you make us feel right at home. And I grew up with some country artist in my ear till it would near make me nuts, singing "I'm the happiest girl in the whole USA" - was meybe Loretta Lynn? Hope you all have a terrific day!

RENE - PHOTO UNTOUCHED

RENE - PHOTO RETOUCHED

Meet our friend Rene. We decided to take a nice portrait of Rene - cuz its what we do! We dragged her, very reluctantly, to a quiet spot, to have her picture taken. Rene is one of those shy folks who do for everyone else but finds it uncomfortable in the limelight. Rene became a widow while her children were very young. She has worked very hard over the past decade to support herself and the children. She 'traded up' jobs, from serving to now, she's working for a school. Rene is a most generous, hard working and honest person. And, as you will see by the picture below - she's an amazing cook! These cream horns are her specialty - made entirely from scratch. Lucky for us, she always brings them to the gatherings we happen to be at!

RENE'S CREAM HORNS

BARB'S TIP # 54

Shoe Goo. My best friend when I am in need. It's a rubber - y stuff made to repair shoes, but it is good for ah, so much more! It dries into a flexible, strong substance. I even used it in our van, to glue velcro permanently onto the roof, to suspend curtains from. We rip at the curtians all summer long without the velcro coming off! I'm sure we could swing off them - but have not tried that yet! As for doing shoes - trust me, its way cheaper than buying new pairs!

WITHOUT LOVE - IT IS NOTHING

SMALL GOLD FRAME ELEMENT

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This gold frame is quite small - meant as an embellishment. I put a picture of my sweetie inside to show you how it might look - but when you download the png, the inside will be transparent - ready for your special person!

I had a request from my friend Camy, a talented published writer, to let you know of a special event/contest she has going on at her blog! I hope you will scoot on over and check it out - HERE! Looks like something you won't want to miss!

You all want to be here at my blog tomorrow - I'm going to be giving a patritoic USA element away - please let your friends know!

With only a week and counting down, before we leave on vacation, I'm struggling. Every day is filled with chores which need to be 'ticked off' my list. As soon as I tick one item off, two more are added. What disturbs me is I find myself plowing through the list by rote. I'm forgetting to pray as much, and I'm cuttitng corners in order to save time. What I DO hear, in my prayers, is - what good will it be if I arrive at the end of the week and though I'm completely prepared for vacation, I'm not at peace with God, and I am at odds with my sweet husband.

Miles has been pretty patient with me. I have examined myself, and found the most curious trait. He may ask me to help him with some small task, and I find some reason I can't do that particular thing. Its not just that I may be unable, or busy...somewhere along the way I've come to resent him asking me to do stuff. It was shocking to realize this. Now that I'm aware, I've observed this phenomena and have come to the conclusion its our old arch-enemy - familiarity.

How I know this, is that someone else could call me up and ask for a favour - and I don't feel that same way - in fact, I'm quick to assure them that it's not a problem, no trouble at all. (Well, I am getting a bit better - even Miles has commented) Used to be, in fact, I would volunteer HIS time as well.

But besides this, the point is, I find myself rushing about 'doing' things... without love. I don't know the point where I began to simply accomplish things - things like saying goodbye to friends, going to Church, helping Miles finish a project etc...without giving them to God, without doing them with a loving heart. Jesus wants to walk with me, but I keep rushing ahead. No matter how far ahead I get He patiently waits for me to notice while I pray and wait for Him to be by my side again. (I do this when I walk with Miles too, as I am a fast walker. All of a sudden I realize I'm 1/4 block ahead)

Thank you Lord, for your patience. As I rush on ahead, you wait for me. When I come to realize and confess, you don't condemn me. And, worse, when I rush around, without love, you still love me. No matter what I DO, if I don't know YOU, it is all meaningless. Thank you for bringing me to the knowledge that I desire YOU to be first in my life - the rest will take care of itself.

I think its all summed up in this song that I like, by Ginny Owens:

I AM NOTHING

AND I could sing like an angel,

songs so humble and so thankful

Full of drama and emotion,

so the world would know Your truth.

I could give away my money and my clothes and my food

To restore those people who are poor,

AND lost, and down-and-out.

Oh, I could succeed at all these things,

Find favor with peasants and kings,

But if I do not love, I am nothing.

I could live a flawless life,

Never cheat or steal or lie,

And always speak so kindly,

smile SO warmly,

and go about doing good.

I could dedicate myself to do what everyone else wants me

to-Listen to them, compliment them, say the things I should.

I could show up every Sunday,

lead the Choir and Bible Study

And they all might come to know me as a leader and a friend.

Oh, I could achieve success on Earth,

but success cannot define my worth

And all these actions, all these words,

THEY will not matter in the end-

CAUSE Songs will fade to silence,

Stories, they will cease.

The dust will settle, covering all my selfless deeds.

So as I strive to serve You,

Won't You make it clear to me,

THAT If I do not love, I am nothing.

AND If I cannot live my life loving my brother,

Then how can I love the One who lived His life for me?

OH, Sent to Earth from Heaven,

Humble Servant, Holy King,

Come to share a story, get no glory,

and save my searching soul,

You knew that I'd deny You,

crucify You, but nothing could stop You

from living for me, dying for me,

so that I would know

THAT Songs will fade to silence,

Stories they will cease,

The dust will settle covering ALL MY selfless deeds.

But Your life here has made it clear enough for me to see

That if I do not love,

I am nothing

BARB'S TIP #53

Discourage Ticks and Other Nasty Bugs!

This tip comes from Reader's Digest - have not tried it myself...YET. I hate ticks...we've had some experiences with them, so I will try this one this summer. Rub some chest rub (vicks) on your legs and pants before you go hiking. This will discourage ticks, gnats and mosquitoes - they hate the smell, it says!

SUNSHINEY SUNDAY

BARBWIRE LOOP ELEMENT

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This was the best Canada Day ever. The weather was incredible - the skies blue as lapis. Droves of people poured out into the streets.

Kelowna's Float

This is supposed to be the legendary Ogopogo -

a water creature which lurks in Okanagan Lake.

When I woke yesterday morning, and looked out our kitchen window, I was taken aback to see military vehicles, right there! This is something you just don't see around here. Is this Canada, or Kandahar? No worries, they were there because the parade lines up on our street.

Mystery Machine?

No, I was informed this is a mobile grape press!

We only stayed for the parade, then headed home to put some work in before going out to our friend Italia and John's house. Our town puts on the second largest fireworks display in Canada, and we were invited over to view them from their beachfront Bed and Breakfast. Little did we know that evening would find us watching the fireworks from not the edge of the water, but ON the water. John owns a party boat, and it did not take much convincing to get us out on the water to view the fireworks close by. Wow, thats all I can say. 1/2 hour of continuous eye candy - my ears are still ringing. We did take some photos, may post them tomorrow if there are some good ones!

The fire department cooling off the crowds!

A welcome treat - Hide that camera!

As we were at the parade, weaving our way through the streets, I overheard the chatter, bits of flotsam of conversations. I heard one lady in particular say to her husband and child "Quick, lets get out of here before we see you know who! "

It was a sad thing - I pray I'm not a "you know who" I know we all have said this same thing because spiritually it does not sit right. I pray the I could ask the Lord in these situations to come to a better alternative than avoidence. What would be scripture which could address this situation?

I need to fill up this morning at Church, its a GOOD thing.

The Cutest Guy at the Parade!

BARB'S TIP #53

Keep Your Flowerpots Moist

If your plants dry out quickly, next time you repot, bury a damp sponge in the bottom. It will act as a reservoir!

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

GLITTERY CANADIAN ALPHA

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Hmmm... I was expecting another friend to load up some Canada Day treats for ya too... will post a link later if I see she has. So Happy Canada Day to all! My entry will be brief today as we are working and fitting in the festivities.

CANADA DAY 2005

Canadian Kit by Sonya Johnston

Believe it or not, our little town puts on one of the best fireworks displays of all BC! Miles took the picture of the fireworks in the Layout, from the viewpoint. We are invited to our Italian Mamma's house to watch them this year, good friends, good food.

Lord, thank you for this wonderful country we live in - that we can be free to worship you. I pray for our government and may our people have a heart for you!

NEW CUSHIONS FOR THE VAN

Our sweet friend Amalia is building new curtains for our van - and she made these cushions to go w/ them! Going on Safari!

BARB'S TIP # 52

Keep Your Colors Bright 'n Spicy

Add a teaspoon of pepper to your wash - pepper keeps bright colors bright, and stops them from running too!